On 2 July, 8 NGO members have visited Russian Embassy to submit the letter to President Putin.
July 2, 2003
HE Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin
President of the Russian Federation
The Kremlin, Moscow
Re: Request for Ratification of the Kyoto Protocol
Dear President Putin,
Thank you sincerely for taking the time to read this letter. We have great respect for your efforts regarding the climate change issue. We represent environmental NGOs based in Japan which are currently engaged in promoting climate change prevention.
At present, climate change is already happening at a rapid pace and demands urgent action. The IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) has warned that if CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, climate change will have a considerable impact on humankind and the global ecosystem. The Kyoto Protocol is the only international framework for dealing with this problem. We therefore believe that participation of as many countries as possible and entry into force of the Protocol remain extremely important objectives.
At the Johannesburg Summit held last September, the Russian Government expressed its intention to ratify the Kyoto Protocol. Additionally, at the G8 Summit held this June in Evian, France, you yourself exhibited a positive outlook regarding ratification of the Protocol. We greatly appreciate these indications of concern for the issue.
Many countries and their citizens look forward to Russia's ratification of the Protocol. There is a great deal of attention being paid to the Russian government's movements to that end. With the 9th Conference of the Parties (COP9) to the UNFCCC in December quickly approaching, it is important to bring the Kyoto Protocol into force within the year. We appeal to your leadership in working to have the Duma pass and ratify the Protocol as soon as possible.
We are pleased by your positive attitude regarding global warming prevention, and we anxiously await equally positive actions.
Yours sincerely,
Kiko Network
Japan Association of Environment and Society for the 21st Century
Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies (ISEP)
WWF Japan
Greenpeace Japan
FoE Japan
Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society (JACSES)
Citizens' Alliance for Saving the Atmosphere and the Earth (CASA)
