The ministers proposed that developed countries make plans for reducing emissions by 15 to 30 percent by 2020 and by 60 to 80 percent by 2050 from benchmark levels in 1990.

The EU commission and a dozen EU states including Italy and Spain have until now opposed fixing targets over concerns it would discourage the US and some developing countries from joining efforts to fight global climate change.

The so-called Kyoto protocol, which sets a target for a 5.2-percent cut in emissions by the industrialised world by 2008-2012 compared to 1990, calls for the opening of negotiations on new targets at the end of the year.

French Environment Minister Serge Lepeltier, who was initially opposed to setting a target for as soon as 2020, said that "it would have sent a bad signal to the whole world" if EU states did not set targets because "Europe has the will to remain the engine behind the struggle against climate change."

Long a champion of Kyoto, the EU is urging other countries to follow its lead after the United States, the world's principal polluter, rejected the accord, setting a precedent for emerging countries such as India and China.

The environment ministers conclusions have yet to be discussed and adopted by heads of state at a March 22-23 summit here.

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