Brussels, 10/12/2002 (Agence Europe) - When presenting two reports on the EU's efforts at reducing greenhouse gas emissions (to which we shall return), Commissioner Margot Wallstrom, speaking to the press on Tuesday, welcomed the unanimous political agreement reached the day before by the Council over swapping emission rights (yesterday's EUROPE, p.10), qualifying it as "historic decision that will enable us to play a leading role and retain our credibility internationally". Hoping that the agreement would be endorsed by the European Parliament, she rejoiced at the fact that the Council should have "confirmed the main architecture of the Commission's proposal": . According to her, the compromise reached by the Fifteen "reconciles environmental effectiveness with economic effectiveness". Furthermore, the agreement is a signal vis-a-vis the United States, which still refuses to ratify the Kyoto Protocol. On this point, she said that certain American companies and States were becoming aware of the announced impact of the phenomenon of climate change and are "adopting measures", letting it be understood that if there is no change in Washington's stance, euro-American contacts "will have to take place at the level of these companies and these States", notably in research and development0