Pacific Rim nations have reached a tentative agreement on the need "to slow, stop and then reverse" climate change, setting non-binding goals to improve energy use, according to a draft statement Saturday.

Details of the draft emerged as U.S. President George W. Bush, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and other leaders gathered at the Sydney Opera House for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. The 21-member group must deal with the declaration before Bush departs later in the day.

The draft being considered struck a compromise between rich and developing nations. It set a target to reduce energy intensity 25 per cent by 2030 — a demand by Australia, backed by the United States.

It also affirmed that climate change negotiations should take place under UN auspices, a demand of China and other developing nations.

"The world needs to slow, stop and then reverse the growth of global greenhouse gas emissions," said the draft obtained by the Associated Press.

A dozen blocks away — on the other side of a three-metre-high metal fence fortified by concrete barriers — thousands protested outside Sydney's town hall against issues ranging from the Iraq war to poverty and global warming. Police said two officers were injured and three people were arrested, but did not provide details of the circumstances.

If Bush, Chinese President Hu Jintao and the 19 other leaders were to accept the draft statement, it would mark a victory for Australia and the U.S., which have sought to persuade China and other developing nations to commit to firmer goals for combatting global warming.

'Everybody did not lose too much'

"Everybody cannot get everything, but everybody did not lose too much," said Salman Al-Farisi, an Indonesian official involved in the talks in which the agreement was drafted.

APEC's membership includes four of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, which contribute to global warming — the U.S., China, Russia and Japan — so an agreement could potentially affect the wider international debate on addressing climate change.

The draft statement included two goals that Australia wanted APEC to agree on. It called for a reduction of "energy intensity" — the amount of energy needed to produce economic growth — and an increase in forest cover in the region by at least 50 million acres by 2020. Forests help absorb the greenhouse gases that help cause climate change.

Both goals are non-binding, in keeping with APEC's voluntary, consensus-based approach.

"We support a flexible arrangement that recognizes diverse approaches," the draft said.

In a concession to developing countries, the statement recognizes "common but differentiated responsibilities" in combating climate change. The phrase means richer nations will have to bear more of the financial costs and other burdens in cutting carbon emissions.

The draft calls for laying the groundwork for a new climate change agreement to replace the UN-backed Kyoto Protocol when it expires in 2012. A series of meetings on a Kyoto successor will take place in coming months, including a UN meeting in Bali in December.