European Union leaders were criticized on Friday for playing a "delaying tactic" on climate change shortly after they finished a two-day summit without any progress on the issue.

During their summit, leaders of the 27-member bloc reached agreement on a number of key issues including legally-binding guarantees to Ireland to secure the country's approval of the reforming Lisbon Treaty, and a deal to strengthen pan-European financial supervision. However, they failed to make any new commitment on climate change.

"On the crucial issues leading to the Copenhagen climate summit, the European Council kept the EU in a holding pattern," the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said in a statement.

"The EU appears to feel the burden is on developing countries to describe in detail why they deserve any support to tackle climate change, prior to making any pledge -- a sure way to impede progress," the statement said.

The summit, or the European Council meeting, failed to put a figure on the table on the actual support for the developing countries the EU is prepared to commit to, or detail the mechanisms for raising it.

"The time has now come for the international community to make the commitments needed to limit global warming to under 2C," says a final statement issued by EU leaders.

They also call on all parties to "cooperate in reaching an ambitious and comprehensive agreement" at the Copenhagen Conference, which is to be held in December.

EU leaders' statement is right, said Jason Anderson, head of European Climate and Energy Policy of the WWF. "The question inevitably arises, therefore, why didn't they make a decision that actually supports such goals?"

"The EU is playing a delaying tactic which can not help ensure an ambitious deal by the UN Copenhagen summit. Europe needs to make progress on the key issues, and not look elsewhere for leadership," he said.

The WWF urged the upcoming Swedish EU presidency to guide Europe toward Copenhagen, establishing a clear roadmap that does not leave all critical decisions to the final European Council meeting before Copenhagen.

The current Czech presidency, which the WWF says has a "timid performance," ends at the end of June and Sweden is taking over the rotating leadership for the second half of 2009.

Meanwhile, the WWF stressed that in light of the 2-degree goal, Europe's 20-percent commitment of emissions reductions by 2020 is "not ambitious as claimed, nor would a 30-percent target if this is to be diluted by buying offset credits from developing countries."

"Europe's minimum commitment should be to 30 percent achieved at home, and an additional 15 percent supported through financing in developing countries. Europe and other developed countries will need to be fully decarbonized by 2050," the statement added.

Source: Xinhua