Japan is pushing to remove a target for zero-emission vehicles from a G7 communique expected this week, according to a proposed draft, in a move that would water down language on climate change from the leaders' summit in Germany.
The pressure from Tokyo, an influential member of the Group of Seven rich nations, comes as Japan's auto industry faces scrutiny from green investors who say it has been slow to embrace zero-emission vehicles and has lobbied against regulations that would encourage quicker transition to the technology.
Reuters reported last week that Toyota Motor Corp.'s head lobbied the Japanese government to make clear it supported hybrid vehicles, which burn fossil fuels, as much as zero-emission battery electrics. G7 leaders are meeting in the Bavarian Alps for a summit where climate change figures on the agenda.