Venezuela says told no emissions deal in Cancun

CANCUN, Mexico (Reuters) - Venezuela and Bolivia said on Friday it was "unacceptable" that several developed countries had told them there could be no agreement on emissions targets at the U.N. climate talks in Cancun.

At the start of the November 29-December 10 talks U.N. officials had said they wanted to firm up existing, non-binding emissions pledges by industrialized countries, possibly in a U.N. decision, at the conference in Cancun.

But delegates from Venezuela, Bolivia and Nicaragua said on Friday a number of unnamed developed countries had ruled out signing up to new emissions targets in a new round of the Kyoto Protocol after its current phase ends in 2012.

Developing countries favor the Protocol, which makes a clear distinction between industrialized and emerging economies, while many developed countries prefer a new agreement which enshrines action by all major emitters.

"The message we heard to our surprise was the following: there is no chance whatsoever of (agreeing) a second period of pledges here in Cancun," said the head of the Venezuelan delegation, Claudia Salerno.

The developed countries were happy however "to send a signal" from Cancun that the Protocol would continue, she said.

"For us a positive result from Cancun should be to preserve the (U.N. climate) convention and the Kyoto Protocol, we think it can be improved, reinforced but under no circumstances destroyed," she said.

The position of the developed countries was "unacceptable," said Bolivia's head of delegation Pablo Solon.

(Reporting by Gerard Wynn, Editing by David Storey)