New Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd today took the oath of office and immediately signed documents to ratify the Kyoto Protocol.
The decision coincides with a UN summit on the Indonesian island of Bali that begins today. The talks involving over 190 countries are the first tentative steps towards a deal to succeed Kyoto which runs out in 2012.
Mr Rudd led the centre-left Labor party to victory at the November 24th election, ending nearly 12 years of conservative rule, by promising a new generation of leadership and committing to sign the Kyoto pact.
The former conservative government refused to ratify Kyoto, saying it would unfairly hurt the Australian economy with its heavy reliance on coal for energy and export income, while countries like India and China were not bound by targets.
Shortly after Mr Rudd was sworn in as prime minister, the decision to ratify Kyoto was approved by Governor-General Michael Jeffery.
Under UN guidelines, full ratification takes place 90 days after the United Nations receives the formal Instrument of Ratification, meaning Australia will be a full signatory to Kyoto by the end of March.
The move clears the way for Mr Rudd to play a stronger role at the climate talks in Bali.
It also isolates the United States, which will now be the only developed nation not to ratify the agreement, which sets binding limits on developed countries to curb the carbon emissions blamed for global warming.