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US President Barack Obama - Source: Reuters -
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US President Barack Obama forged a climate pact with major
developing nations including China but European nations only
reluctantly signed up for a deal they criticised as
unambitious.
All sides conceded the agreement - the first pact for fighting
global warming since the 1997 Kyoto Protocol - was imperfect and
fell far short of United Nations targets for the December 7-18
talks.
Obama said the deal, which sets a goal of limiting temperature
rises to below 2 Celsius and holds out the prospect of an annual
$100 billion in aid for developing nations by 2020, was a starting
point for world efforts to slow climate change.
"This progress did not come easily and we know this progress
alone is not enough," Obama said after talks with China's Premier
Wen Jiabao, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and South Africa's
President Jacob Zuma which led to the deal.
"We've come a long way but we have much further to go," he said of
the deal, meant to prevent more heatwaves, floods, wildfires,
mudslides and rising ocean levels.
"The meeting has had a positive result, everyone should be happy,"
said Xie Zhenhua, head of China's climate delegation. "After
negotiations both sides have managed to preserve their bottom
line."
The draft agreement still had to win formal approval from a full
meeting of all 193 nations at the talks, due later on Saturday. "If
this makes it through the meeting...then I see it as a modest
success," said Yvo de Boer, head of the UN Climate Change
Secretariat. "We could have achieved more."
European nations only fell in line reluctantly with the "Copenhagen
Accord" and some developing nations were strongly
critical.
Merkel wanted more
"The decision has been very difficult for me. We have done one
step, we have hoped for several more," said German Chancellor
Angela Merkel. She had hoped that all nations would promise deeper
cuts in emissions, mainly from burning fossil fuels, during the
Copenhagen summit.
A goal mentioned in some draft texts of halving world greenhouse
gas emissions by 2050, for instance, was dropped.
"I came here to Copenhagen wanting the most ambitious deal
possible. We have made a start. I believe that what we need to
follow up on quickly is ensuring a legally binding outcome," said
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
China broke with its allies in the developing nations' group of 77
and China by strongly embracing the accord.
"This represents the worst development in climate change
negotiations in history ... Gross violations have been committed
today," said Lumumba Stanislaus Di-Aping of Sudan, who speaks on
behalf of the Group of 77 and China."
Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said that Sudan was in the
meeting when the deal was drafted.
Obama was unable to offer deeper cuts, partly because carbon
capping legislation is stalled in the US Senate. Washington backed
a plan to raise $100 billion in aid for poor nations from
2020.
The deal sets an end-January 2010 deadline for all nations to
submit plans for curbs on emissions to the United Nations. A
separate text proposes an end-2010 deadline for transforming the
non-binding pledges into a legally binding treaty.
Some environmental groups were also scathing.
"The city of Copenhagen is a crime scene tonight, with the guilty
men and women fleeing to the airport," said John Sauven, executive
director of Greenpeace UK.
Negotiators had struggled all day to find a compromise acceptable
to all in the unprecedented summit of 120 world leaders.
Tensions between China and the United States, the world's two
biggest emitters, had been particularly acute after Obama - in a
message directed at the Chinese - said any deal to cut emissions
would be "empty words on a page" unless it was transparent and
accountable.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy said the deal was backed by all
nations at the talks, and had succeeded in binding major carbon
emitting countries to curbing their pollution.
"The text we have is not perfect.. If we had no deal, that would
mean that two countries as important as India and China would be
liberated from any type of contract....the United States, which is
not in Kyoto would be free of any type of contract. That's why a
contract is absolutely vital."
What do you think of the deal reached? Is it strong
enough to make a difference to global warming? Have your say
on our messageboard below.
Add a Comment:
Post new commentscambreaker said on 2009-12-21 @ 09:40 NZDT: Report abusive post
The north and south polar ice caps on Mars have been shrinking for years. This is due to greater output of heat from the Sun, or perhaps the Martians have started up a whole lot of new industry there belching out CO2 from their chimneys. The Sun had thousands of sun-spots, now it has only a handful. Sun-spots are areas where there is reduced output radiation, so now there is more heat coming from the Sun.This has been the case for the last 17 years.
scambreaker said on 2009-12-19 @ 20:26 NZDT: Report abusive post
How arrogant! To say that mankind will hold the atmospheric temperature to no greater than a 2 degree rise !! The Earths magnetic field is diminishing. The only reason the Vanallen belt is in place is by virtue of the Earths magnetic field. As this reduces, the Vanallen belt thins, thus letting in more Sun radiation. As the oceans then warm, they absorb less CO2. Increased CO2 levels FOLLOWS atmospheric warming, it does not PRECEDE it! Tuvalu is sinking, not the sea rising!!
marthur said on 2009-12-19 @ 19:02 NZDT: Report abusive post
This deal is no where enough. It allows the short sighted people to again put off the most important decision we need to make. It will be too late if we are not careful. We are already following the worst case scenario from the IPCC. The short sightedness of these leaders is incredible, our own included.
Zen said on 2009-12-19 @ 18:26 NZDT: Report abusive post
wow acting like we can controll the temprature on the planet earth what a totally insane idea, are they going to build a big umbrella to block the sun?
katedye said on 2009-12-08 @ 20:44 NZDT: Report abusive post
Africa should be accountable for itself. huge amounts of money are poured into that continent, yet genocide and official embezzlement and corruption continues. Small countries that are nearly bankrupted themselves by immigrant dependancy, e.g. NZ, should not be leading the way in sacrifice, like carbon trading, to help other countries. NZ should be regulating its own offenders for pollution. Enforcing clean air, clean water industry in NZ. Standards not money is the solution kiwis.