WUI (Writing under the influence)

WARSAW -(Dow Jones)- Poland asked the European Union for a 2008-2012 annual quota of carbon dioxide emissions of at least 240.8 million metric tons, the Environment Ministry said in a statement Tuesday.

The ministry said that any annual quota lower than the mentioned 240.8 million tons will curb Poland's economic growth.

Last week, the ministry said that it expected the E.U. will cut the CO2 emissions quota from a requested 284 million tons a year to 210 million tons.

Poland called for the European Commission to consider the fact that between 1988 and 2004 the country reduced its CO2 emissions by 32% to 386.4 million tons, chiefly due to slower growth and was well ahead of the Kyoto Protocol requirement that called for 5% emission cuts by 2012.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried met with Polish Defence Minister Aleksander Szczyglo in Warsaw to discuss placing an anti-missile defense shield on the territory of Poland, Ministry spokesman Jaroslaw Rybak said.

Rybak told the AFP news service that, "It was a working meeting. The discussion covered the missions in Afghanistan and Iraq and aspects of the deployment of parts of the anti-missile shield in Europe...The meeting was held at the request of the American side."

The U.S. wants to place anti-ballistic missile interceptors in Poland and install a radar system in the Czech Republic. The system is designed to stop missiles from what Washington calls "rogue states" like Iran.

Russia has vehemently protested the plan, seeing it as a threat and a shift in the balance of power in Europe.

Several EU countries, notably Germany, are not keen on the plan either and have asked Washington to address Moscow's concerns.

posted by Polish Immigrant  # 9:34 PM