Kyoto Protocol frustrating for Koizumi.

WASHINGTON - The issue of curbing global warming is becoming a big headache for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who has assumed a pro-U.S. posture since taking office in April.

At the Group of Eight summit held in the heavily guarded Palazzo Ducale in Genoa, Italy, on July 21, Koizumi failed in his attempt to broker a compromise between the United States and the European Union on implementation of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on curbing global warming, and the talks broke down.

The G-8 leaders got nowhere after discussing the divisive issue for more than an hour. Koizumi was particularly embarrassed by French President Jacques Chirac's obstinacy in the course of discussions concerning the protocol. Chirac repeatedly pounded on the table, calling for ratification of the Kyoto protocol, and finally agreed to disagree, after U.S. President George W. Bush reiterated the …