CAIRO, July 5, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – US President George W. Bush stands as a stumbling block to save the Earth from the perilous phenomenon of global warming as G8 leaders prepared to gather in Gleneagles, Scotland, for Wednesday's summit to address the issue along with African poverty, a leading British newspaper reported Tuesday, July 5.

In an apparent snub to British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who pinned high hopes that the US leader would back an agreement by the world’s richest countries to combat global warming, Bush has rejected outright any suggestion that the US might join the Kyoto Protocol or consider any binding agreements to cut US emissions of greenhouse gases, The Independent reported.

At a time when the scientific consensus that climate change is real and overwhelming, Bush put it bluntly “I go to the G8 with an agenda that I think is best for our country.”

In an interview broadcast Monday night on Britain’s ITV1 channel, Bush made it clear that he would not help Blair to strike a deal on global warming at the G8 summit in return for his support on Iraq, according to the daily.

“You know, Tony Blair made decisions on what he thought was best for the people of Great Britain, and I made decisions on what I thought was best for Americans. I really don't view our relationship as one of quid pro quo,” he said.

Blair wants a statement on the environmental phenomenon, an agreement on the development of energy-saving technology and the beginnings of a climate change partnership with the developing world from the G8.

The world's increasing consumption of fossil fuels was mostly due to the habits of the western world, particularly the United States which is responsible for one quarter of carbon dioxide emissions.

Came into force on February 16, 2005, the Kyoto Protocol is ratified by a total of 141 countries. Notable exceptions include the United States and Australia.

An amendment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the US-snubbed Protocol commits member states to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide and five other greenhouse gases.

The agreement was almost destroyed in 2001 after it was abandoned by Bush, who contended it was too costly for the oil-dependent US economy and unfair because it does not bind developing countries to emissions cuts.

Bush’s stance on the environment prompted Greenpeace group to label his administration as the worst performer on the history of environmental policy.

Although the issue has been eclipsed over the past few days by Africa aid, the issues of global warming and African poverty are indeed inseparably linked, according to the paper.

It citied a report drawn up a group of leading environmental and aid agencies like Greenpeace and Oxfam, which concluded that the first issue cannot be solved without dealing with the second.

Environmentalists warned that global warming will make hunger more acute; shortage of clean water will be more degrading; disease will be more painful, crippling and deadly; natural disasters will be more overwhelming.

“Climate change threatens to vitiate all the efforts to help Africa that the rich world can possibly come up with, all the debt cancellation, the aid increases and the trade liberalization,” The Independent said.

A top scientist forum in Britain raised in February the stakes for the dangers of global warming, with concerned scientists even outlining a timeline for the massive horrors awaiting the globe unless swift actions are taken