Leaders of the 28-member EU agreed on a European policy on climate change and energy for the period 2020-2030 and fixed a target to reach at least 40 percent emissions cut by 2030, said a statement here Friday evening.
"I am happy to announce tonight that the European Council has agreed on a climate and energy deal for Europe for the period 2020-2030. It was not easy but we managed to reach a fair decision," outgoing President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, told the press.
"With the crisis in Ukraine and turmoil in the Middle East, it has become very clear how urgent and how vital it is to reduce Europe's energy dependency," he said. " Climate change is one of the biggest challenges of mankind. Ultimately, this is about survival, it is the example of a long-term policy," he stressed.
They also agreed on at least 27 percent renewables in 2030.
On his part, outgoing President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso told the joint press conference that "this agreement is also vital for our energy security. By cutting our emissions, increasing renewables to at least 27 percent and saving energy will reduce on dependence on imported fossil fuels from unstable or unreliable suppliers." The EU leaders also discussed the fight against the Ebola outbreak in West-Africa and decided to appoint the incoming EU Commissioner for humanitarian aid Christos Stylianides, as EU coordinator for Ebola.
The EU leaders appointed a new European Commission led by Jean-Claude Juncker for the period from November first, 2014 to 31 October 2019.