The twin demands of action to prevent climate change and enhance energy security requires Europe to commit to challenging mandatory controls on greenhouse gasses after 2012, Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, said on Wednesday.

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In a marked contrast to George Bush’s State of the Union address on Tuesday, when he set an ambition to reduce gasoline usage in the US by 20 per cent over the next 10 years, Ms Merkel said she welcomed the opportunity for the European Union to “offer a [greenhouse gas] reduction target of 30 per cent, but we expect other large emitters to participate in that”.