The European Commission on Wednesday unveiled proposals for a comprehensive new global agreement on climate change that calls on developed countries to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent from 1990 levels by 2020.

The blueprint for the Copenhagen UN climate conference in December 2009 urges developing countries, except the poorest ones, to limit growth in their collective emissions to 15 to 30 percent below "business as usual" levels by 2020.

The blueprint calls for a rapid reduction in emissions from tropical deforestation and asks developing countries to adopt low-carbon development strategies covering all key emitting sectors by 2011.

The proposals urge developed countries to take the lead in emission reduction and help developing countries financially in their adaptation to low-carbon economy.

The European Commission, the executive body of the European Union (EU), believes that to reach those goals, the global net additional investment may need to rise to around 175 billion euros (US$232 billion) every year by 2020.

More than half of the investment will be needed in developing countries.

The Commission proposes the creation of a carbon market covering all Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, grouping high-income countries in Western Europe and North America, by 2015.

The market should be expanded to include major emerging economies by 2020 with a view to building a global carbon market.

"Tackling the causes and impacts of climate change will require significant private and public investments over coming decades, though these investments will cost far less than letting climate change continue its destructive course," EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said.

(Xinhua News Agency January 28, 2009)