On December 15, DPJ Chair of the DPJ Global Warming Countermeasures Headquarters Katsuya Okada, made the following statement:

The 14th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP14) held in Poznan, Poland, ended with the formal adoption of a work plan in accordance with the time limit for negotiations set at the end of next year.

The work plan states that developed countries will continue being subject to specific objectives for mandatory reductions [of carbon dioxide emissions] beyond 2013, that a mid-term report on the debate regarding the objectives will be published by the end of March, and that a proposal will be drafted for the conference to be held next year. On the other hand, no particular progress was registered on additional emission reductions by developed countries nor on specific measures that would include developing countries, underlining the fact that important issues are being deferred. The scale of long term reduction objectives was not included in the work plan and the definition of midterm objectives was limited to the same formulation used at the Bali conference in 2007, the Japanese government and other parties arguing that such a definition was premature.

Despite the fact that the United States administration is in a transition period, it is extremely unfortunate that the countries involved appeared unready to make concessions and that Japan failed to exert its leadership. In the meantime, global warming continues to develop and the international community cannot afford any further delay.

During the previous ordinary session of the Diet, the Democratic Party of Japan proposed a 25 percent reduction of CO2 emissions by 2020 in comparison with 1990 levels, and a 60 percent cut to be achieved as quickly as possible by 2050 as a midterm objective. In order to achieve these goals, the DPJ submitted a Basic Bill on Global Warming Countermeasures that would establish an emissions trading system and a tax to fund measures against global warming. In parallel with its efforts to resubmit and secure the adoption of this bill, the DPJ is now striving to achieve a change of administration in order to establish Japan's leadership in international negotiations and turn the country into one of the world's leading low-carbon societies.