Connie Hedegaard, the Danish Minister for the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, has confirmed she is being replaced by Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen.
Mr Rasmussen said he was taking over as summit president because of the great importance of the final days of the conference, and not because of criticisms that Ms Hedegaard was favouring rich countries.
On Thursday and Friday, 119 national leaders are due to attend the summit. The organisers say such attendance is almost unprecedented and that only the General Assembly of the United Nations is able, from time to time, to draw so many heads of state.
Although the organisers have called for a peaceful demonstration, there are serious concerns that the situation will escalate. Activists say they plan to enter the conference grounds, by force if necessary.
Stringent security measures are in place in Copenhagen, with police stopping busses and cars moving towards the conference centre and searching passers-by for weapons.
On Wednesday morning, police fired tear gas and arrested over 160 demonstrators during a march on the Climate Conference.
Photos of Connie Hedegaard and Lars Lokke Rasmussen from Wikimedia Commons
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And isn't what COP 15 is all about? The rich protecting their turf and to hell with the rest? The rich need to be reminded, off of whose backs their wealth has come. Thieves in business suits.
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