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European Union leaders have agreed what they called the world's most ambitious climate change targets for 2030, paving the way for a new UN-backed global treaty next year.

The 28 leaders overcame deep divisions at a summit in Brussels to reach a deal including a headline commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40 per cent 16 years from now, EU head Herman Van Rompuy said.

They also agreed on 27 per cent targets for renewable energy supply and efficiency gains, in spite of reservations from some member states about the cost of the measures.

'Deal! At least 40 per cent emissions cut by 2030. World's most ambitious, cost-effective, fair EU 2030 climate energy policy agreed,' Van Rompuy tweeted.

The EU wanted to agree on the targets ahead of a summit in Paris in November and December 2015, where it is hoped the world will agree to a new phase of the Kyoto climate accords which run until 2020.

The agreement puts the EU 'in the driving seat' ahead of the Paris conference, Euroopean Commission head Jose Manuel Barroso said.

Leaders had been cautious about the prospect of a deal before haggling late into the night on the details.

The negotiations saw a split between richer, greener nations and poorer countries that depend heavily on fossil fuels or on gas from Russia.

Poland had previously threatened to veto a deal, fearing that its near complete reliance on coal would have made it prohibitively expensive to meet the targets.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande had talks with Polish premier Eva Kovacsz on the sidelines of the summit in a bid to talk her round.

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EU leaders seal landmark 2030 climate deal