Denmark says 65 leaders enrolled for climate talks

Greenpeace activists hang banners at the Sagrada Familia Temple, designed by Antoni Gaudi, in Barcelona November 2, 2009.

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Sixty-five world leaders have confirmed they will attend next month's U.N. climate conference in Copenhagen which Danish officials hope will bring strong political commitment for a new treaty to combat global warming.

Though hopes of reaching a legally binding agreement have slipped into next year, Denmark 10 days ago upgraded the December 7-18 climate talks by inviting 191 heads of state and government to attend the final two days of the Copenhagen meeting to muster forces for a political deal.

The Copenhagen conference was initially for environment ministers, but now the stage is set for a summit though it remains unclear if U.S. President Barack Obama will attend.

"To cut through the outstanding issues and make an ambitious deal ... the active involvement of heads of state and government is crucial," Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen told a meeting of his Liberal Party on Sunday, according to a spokesman.

"That is why we are encouraged that already more than 60 heads of state and government have confirmed they will participate, and just as important that many more have also been positive," Rasmussen said.

A Danish government official said the number so far was 65 but declined to provide a full list of those who had agreed to come to the Copenhagen conference, adding that Denmark would let leaders make their own announcements.

He noted, however, that some leaders, such as those of Britain, Germany, France, Spain, Australia, Japan, Indonesia and Brazil, had announced their intention to attend.

RISK

The United Nations said this month about 40 leaders had indicated plans to attend, mostly from developing nations, even before the official invitation.

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso has said he would come. And Obama has said he would attend if it could give impetus to a deal.

Marathon talks since 2007 have failed to overcome differences between developed and developing nations on issues such as the depth of greenhouse gas cuts by industrialized countries by 2020 or extra funds to help poor nations.

Rasmussen's decision to invite world leaders is a calculated risk, analysts say. Their presence can raise chances of a deal but the need for a summit is an admission that negotiations are in trouble after a final round of talks in Barcelona this month.

Many developing nations want the rich countries to cut their greenhouse gas emissions, mainly from burning fossil fuels, by at least 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 as a condition for actions by the poor to start curbing their rising pollution.

So far, promises by the rich states fall far short, at cuts of about 11 to 15 percent. And developed nations have yet to meet promises of extra aid to developing countries.

The EU has promised to cut emissions by a unilateral 20 percent below 1990 levels and by up to 30 percent if others follow suit. A draft bill before the U.S. Senate would cut emissions to about seven percent below 1990 levels by 2020.

(Additional reporting by Anna Ringstrom; Editing by Jon Hemming and Michael Roddy)