Beijing - Asian and European Union leaders on Saturday committed their 43 nations to agreeing new goals on climate change by the end of next year.

The 16 Asian and 27 EU leaders issued a joint statement saying they planned to finalize a post-Kyoto Protocol deal on climate change goals to 2012 at talks in Copenhagen scheduled for December 2009.

New targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions would build on the December 2007 climate change conference in Bali, Indonesia, they said, calling on developed nations to show "strong leadership".

"We welcome the decisions of the Bali Action Plan, containing all the elements for an ambitious, effective and comprehensive agreed outcome for long-term cooperative action now, up to and beyond 2012 for strengthening international cooperation on addressing climate change," said the statement issued at the close of a biannual Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM).

"Recognizing the importance of tackling climate change, we affirm that developed countries should continue to show strong leadership and take measurable, reportable and verifiable nationally appropriate mitigation commitments," it said.

It said developed nations should use "quantified emission limitation and reduction objectives" and "provide financial support and technology transfer to developing countries".

"Developing countries will take nationally appropriate mitigation actions in the context of sustainable development, supported and enabled by technology, financing and capacity-building, in a measurable, reportable and verifiable manner, with a view to achieving a deviation from business-as-usual emissions," the ASEM leaders said.

"We affirm the critical role of technology, the need for technological cooperation and technology transfer to developing countries," they said.

The two-day ASEM summit was originally planned to focus on climate change.

EU President Jose Manuel Barroso admitted that the need to respond to the global financial crisis "took most of our attention" but said the fight to reduce greenhouse gas emissions must continue at the same time.

"The financial crisis is not a reason, and it should not be a pretext, to postpone our commitments regarding fighting climate change," Barroso said.

The Asian and European Union leaders also discussed energy and food security, human rights and sustainable development, he said.

They issued a joint statement committing them to comprehensive reform of global financial systems, and urged the international community to act quickly and decisively at a conference on responses to the global financial crisis next month in Washington. (dpa)