Blair beats the bushes for global warming allies in India, China & Japan

Tony Blair, former British Prime Minister, right, talks with Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, left, during their meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Tokyo.  Blair is visiting Japan as part of the "Breaking The Climate Deadlock" initiative in which he will visit Japan, China and India in the next seven days. [Getty Images]

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair began a tour of China, India and Japan on Friday hoping to rally support for a global pact to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2050, according to the Associated Press.

In a video posted on his Web site, Blair -- who left office in June -- warned that the global response to climate change is still not living up to the scale of the problem. He insisted a deal must be agreed within two years, according to AP.

"China and some other developing countries, including India, argue their economies should not be penalized by binding cuts when their per capita emissions are below those in developed countries," the AP reported. "China now generates a large share of the world's greenhouse gases, with some experts saying it has already overtaken the U.S. as the world's No. 1 emitter."

To read the AP story, click here.

--Craig Pittman