Caption: UN Secretary- General Ban Ki-moon addressed an event co-hosted by The Japan Society and The Korea Society in New York on June 26 (photo by CHEN WEN)

Developed countries should take more responsibility in dealing with climate change and soaring food prices, issues that could drive societies "apart," said UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on June 26.

Addressing an event co-hosted by the Japan Society and Korea Society in New York, Ban said that developed countries, given their "historical responsibilities" for carbon emissions, should bear more responsibilities and take the lead in the campaign against climate change.

He expressed his disappointment over the newly concluded meeting of major economies on energy security and climate change held in Seoul on June 21-22. "There was not much progress and they were not even able to agree on long-term targets," Ban said.

It's less than 18 months away from the climate change conference in Copenhagen in December 2009, during which the parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change will meet for the last time at government level before renewal of the Kyoto Protocol. Ban said the future of our planet is now "at stake" and he called for full participation of all countries based on the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities."

On the skyrocketing food prices, Ban pointed out that it is caused not only by natural factors like extreme weather but also "trade distorting policies" practiced by industrialized countries.

These policies referred to export restrictions and import incentives on food commodities, and food and agricultural subsidies. These kinds of trade practices may have some short-term gains, but if left unchecked will ultimately affect the whole economic system of the world and will also have negative impact on all those industrialized countries, said Ban. He urged them to "reconsider" these policies.

(Chen Wen, Beijing Review, reporting from New York)