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With the 2009 United Nations climate meeting in Copenhagen bearing down on him, President Obama announced that the United States will propose a target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The announcement comes amidst a lack of agreement within Congress over the climate bill, which has already been passed in the House. The House passed its measure in June which stated domestic emissions of gases contributing to the heating of the planet would be reduced by 17 percent over 2005 levels.

With Congress locked in the stalemate, President Obama faces a potential no-win situation. Without the agreement from Congress, the President may only be able to give a range of possible reduction amounts rather than an exact figure. However, if he does give a range rather than a single figure before the Copenhagen meeting, the United States may face blame as the cause for the lack of an international agreement. President Obama has already stated that the amount of time he will be present at the Copenhagen meeting will depend upon how useful his presence will be in reaching an international deal.

The United States is not alone in its non-committal to an amount for its emission reductions. According to the New York Times, China, which emits the largest amount of client-altering gases in the world, has also not committed to an exact amount that it will reduce emissions. In September, President Hu Jintao promised that his country would reduce the amount of gas emitted per unit of economic output by a “notable margin.” However, that margin has not yet been revealed.

While not alone, President Obama has received some criticism. Numerous countries which have already set reduction targets of greenhouse gases have criticized the president for not committing to an amount. Many environmentalists have also put the president under fire. They state that the United States, as the world’s second largest emitter of greenhouse gases, must make a serious commitment to the Copenhagen meeting in order to ensure that the talks to do not fall apart and an agreement is reached.

More than 190 nations will be present for the United Nation’s climate meeting to discuss and agree upon ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. While it is uncertain whether a formal agreement will be reached at the Copenhagen meeting, a number of the major countries participating do expect that an interim agreement will be reached.