“We will use our decision [to upscale the target]… as a lever, a tool, to get sufficient commitment and measures from the rest of the world,” said Mr Carlgren told the closing session of the European Commission's annual Green Week. Sweden is set to take over the EU presidency on 1 July.

"The prospects for deal at Copenhagen have brightened over the past year," commission president José Manuel Barroso said. He recalled the need for developed countries to take the lead on mitigation, "reducing emissions by at least 80 % by 2050". But he made no reference to more controversial mid-term emission reduction goals for 2020.

Recent climate talks in Mexico and Bonn made little progress on these issues and other countries' commitments, environment commissioner Stavros Dimas told delegates. Governments mainly clarified their positions in Mexico and massively expanded, not narrowed, a draft negotiating text in Bonn.

The Mexico talks’ highlight was an engaging speech by Mexican president Felipe Calderón, not the technical discussions, said the head of the commission's environment department Karl Falkenberg. Mr Calderón showed vision, providing the “only moment of hope” during the discussions.

Mr Dimas said he looked forward to the US House of Representatives' vote on a climate draft law on Friday. The law would not bring US emissions down significantly from to 1990 levels, but they could drop further depending on how much consideration is given to avoided deforestation under a cap-and-trade scheme.

"Developed countries will do more we think and developing countries, especially the Chinese, will soon commit… to adopt more aggressive actions to reduce emissions, so we can progress together," Wang Yi from the Chinese Academy of Sciences said. "Copenhagen is not the end-point, only the beginning," he added.

*Meanwhile British prime minister Gordon Brown launched a "Road to Copenhagen" manifesto on Friday, calling on developed nations to provide US$100bn (€70bn) annually to developing countries by 2020 to help them combat climate change.

Mr Brown also echoed Mr Barroso's call for developed countries to commit to reduce emissions by 80% by 2050 and called for aviation and maritime emissions to be part of a Copenhagen deal, and for forestry to be included in the carbon market..