The European Union's executive leader is urging the United States to show more ambition and take further action towards a global climate change agreement at the upcoming meeting of major industrialized countries in Japan. Despite some progress in aligning on the need to address greenhouse gas emissions, significant differences remain between Brussels and Washington. EU officials emphasize that without a stronger commitment from President George W. Bush, meaningful progress may not be made until late next year when countries will be working to negotiate a new U.N. climate change accord. The next round of U.N. climate talks is scheduled for December in Poland, but the U.S. will be in a period of transition before the inauguration of the next president in January. Barroso stated that as a major economy, the United States should meet higher expectations from the world. He expressed his belief that the U.S. will agree to a more ambitious conclusion at the upcoming G8 summit, as last year's agreement fell short. The EU is pushing for the G8 to solidify a global goal of halving greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and set a target for emission cuts by 2020. While there is skepticism about the Bush administration supporting a near-term goal, Barroso emphasized the importance of having a closer target in addition to the 2050 goal for credibility. He mentioned that he anticipated the upcoming U.S. president to further support the change in Washington's stance on measures already approved by the EU. The EU, consisting of 27 nations, has agreed to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by a minimum of 20 percent from 1990 levels by the year 2020 and is currently developing regulations on emissions from industry, vehicles, aircraft, and other laws to achieve that goal. The United States claims to be dedicated to combating climate change, however, it is reluctant to agree to mandatory emission reductions until major developing countries like China and India also commit to enforced limits.