Prime Minister Goran Persson of Sweden, which currently holds the European Union's rotating presidency, on Saturday urged Japan to take a resolute stand toward ratifying the Kyoto Protocol aimed at curbing global warming.
"I really hope that the Japanese government will be strong and consistent in their support for the Kyoto Protocol," Persson told Kyodo News, with a view to the resumed session in July's Sixth Conference of Parties of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bonn, Germany.
Persson stressed that the international environment agreement aimed at curbing global warming is "the only tool" to combat climate change globally. He made his remarks following the conclusion of the EU summit meeting in Sweden's city of Goteborg.
In Europe there are widespread concerns over Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's remarks in a Diet debate Wednesday, where he said, "At the moment, we have not decided to make a decision independently" from the U.S.