Barack Obama says he will go to Copenhagen climate change conference

President Barack Obama has said he will go to Copenhagen next month to secure an international deal on climate change.

Telegraph.co.uk, Published: 7:00AM GMT 10 Nov 2009

President Obama acknowledged that the US Senate would not pass the crucial legislation before Copenhagen.

A key global treaty to stop global warming almost collapsed last week after poorer nations threatened to walk out unless rich countries like America agree to cut their emissions.

However President Obama said he thinks a deal can still be done and he will go to Denmark in mid-December to make sure it happens.

"If I am confident that all of the countries involved are bargaining in good faith and we are on the brink of a meaningful agreement and my presence in Copenhagen will make a difference in tipping us over edge then certainly that's something that I will do," he told Reuters.

The UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen has been billed as the world’s last chance to stop temperature rise going above 2C (3.6F).

The latest round of UN talks in Barcelona last week ended in deadlock, after the US and other rich countries refused to cut their greenhouse gas emissions in line with the poor world’s demands.

It is difficult for the US to sign up to legally-binding emission targets until the level of cuts have been approved by the Senate.

President Obama acknowledged that the US Senate would not pass the crucial legislation before Copenhagen.

But he said a “framework” agreement can still be thrashed out that commits the world to tackling global warming.

"I think the question is can we create a set of principles, building blocks, that allow for ongoing and continuing progress on the issue and that's something I'm confident we can achieve," he said.

The President’s intervention will come as a relief to environment groups who want America to lead the world on climate change – although they will be campaigning hard to ensure President Obama signs up to a tough enough target eventually.

It is now thought the Copenhagen meeting will become a “leader’s summit” where the world will make a “political agreement” on cutting emissions before thrashing out targets and a legal treaty later in the year.

Talks between the US and Chinese leaders during an Asia tour later this month will be crucial in agreeing carbon emission targets and the amount of money developed countries are willing to pay the poor world to help them cut emissions.

President Obama said the large polluting nations can thrash out a deal.

"The key now is for the United States and China, the two largest emitters in the world, is to be able to come up with a framework that, along with other big emitters like the Europeans and those countries that are projected to be large emitters in the future, like India, can all buy into," he said.