Beijing leads the charge against the EU's 'carbon tax'
Moscow (AsiaNews) - China, the United States and 21 other nations have agreed to fight a tax the European Union wants to levy on greenhouse gas emissions to curb the effects of climate change. The new tax is not on carbon per se but on flights to and from Europe, an unfortunate choice by Brussels because it would impose a burden on those who travel to and from the European Union.
Underlying the proposed levy is the notion that polluting gases fall in countries that did not cause them and therefore have a right to compensation. However, this fails to take into account the fact that most aircraft emissions occur outside of the EU zone over oceans and that it is impossible to measure how much of them really affect EU territory.
Beijing came out immediately against the proposal. Now, with the support of Russia and 21 other nations, it has inked the Moscow Joint Declaration. In it, the 23 signatories say they are prepared to take retaliatory trade measures against European-based airlines that fly internationally and listed nine possible ways to do so.
Speaking on behalf of the group, which includes China, India, Japan, Saudi Arabia and Nigeria, Russian Deputy Transport Minister Valery Okulov said, "We intend to get the EU's carbon-trading measures cancelled or postponed".
He added that Russia might also cease issuing new permits for European airlines to fly over Siberia on Europe-to-Asia routes.
In China, the European proposal is seen as a challenge, especially in view of the limited results achieved by international summits on the environment.
In addition, the idea of man-made climate change is being met by growing scepticism and irony.
Global warming, which should have melted the polar caps and flooded the world, does not square well with this year's coldest winter in 50 years.
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