If you’re not willing to lead, please get out of the way.
AFT is reporting on the final tense negotiations during the final hours of the Bali COP13 conference that concluded this weekend. Global warming pact set for 2009 after US backs down.
World climate negotiators set a 2009 deadline Saturday for a landmark treaty to fight global warming after two weeks of intense haggling led to a climbdown by an isolated United States.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who flew to the Indonesian island of Bali for a late appeal for flexibility, praised the deal as a “pivotal first step” to confront climate change, “the defining challenge of our time.”
Following gruelling all-night talks, the conference of 190 nations finally launched a process to negotiate a new treaty for when the UN Kyoto Protocol’s commitments expire in 2012.
The summit was the scene of many significant breakthroughs, not the least of which was the commencement of the formal Kyoto Protocol ratification process by the new Australian Prime Minister, Mr Kevin Rudd. This allowed Australia, who sent 5 senior cabinet officials to the talks including Rudd and Penny Wong who heads up the newly created Climate Change ministry.
Rudd’s announcement was greeted with prolonged and stormy applause by the amassed delegates and observers. This stands in stark contrast to the reaction given to US negotiator Paula Dobriansky.
[A]fter the summit went into an unscheduled 13th day of talks, the United States said it would not accept the statement as it wanted developing countries such as fast-growing China to make tougher commitments.
The senior US negotiator, Paula Dobriansky, said she had heard “many strong statements from many major developing country leaders on a greater role in helping to address urgently this global problem.”
It “doesn’t seem it’s going to be reflected in our outcome here in the declaration,” she said, explaining why the United States would reject the draft.
Dobriansky was loudly booed by other delegations, and a US environmental activist representing Papua New Guinea said to rousing cheers: “If you’re not willing to lead, please get out of the way.”
The response, and a threat by German Environment minister to directly involve the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, seemed to do the trick.
After repeated verbal lashings, Dobriansky again took the microphone and said that Washington would “go forward and join consensus,” to the cheers of the conference.
So what’s actually been agreed to?
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was more positive, calling the agreement “a vital step forward for the whole world”. He added: “I am delighted that after two weeks of intensive talks the world’s nations have agreed on a Roadmap to achieving a new global framework for tackling climate change. The Bali Roadmap is just the first step.”
And German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the Roadmap “opens the way to real negotiations on effective measures to protect the climate, and for binding targets” on reducing CO2 emissions.“Of course, the road to an agreement to succeed Kyoto is still paved with obstacles,” she said, adding that she was “convinced” that Bali will bring real progress.
“The joint stance of the Europeans was an important foundation for this good result. Without it, success at Bali would not have been possible.”
The agreement came after extraordinary scenes in which UN chief Ban jetted in for a last-ditch appeal, the UN’s exhausted climate chief nearly broke down in tears and conference chair Indonesia apologised for a disastrous procedural mix-up.
“What we witnessed today was an incredible drama,” said Alden Meyer of the US-based Union of Concerned Scientists.
“I’ve been following these negotiations for 20 years and I’ve never seen anything like it.”
So the world has agreed that climate change is a threat, but not yet agreed on exactly what emissions targets should be put in place. Australia is waiting until the outcome of the Garnaut report early next year and the US is still firmly opposed to targets that do not include developing countries like China.
Hans Verolme of conservation group WWF accused the world of bowing to US pressure and removing a scientific punch needed to fight global warming.
But he also said the Bali talks would inspire environmentalists and activist nations until the end of Bush’s mandate in January 2009.
“We have learned a historic lesson. If you expose to the world the dealings of the United States, they will ultimately back down.”
A bully has been reproached however and that is almost certainly due to Australia’s ratification moves leaving the US utterly isolated in the international community. One hopes that as twilight sets on the Bush regime a more rational view will emerge in the USA, the producer of around a quarter of all the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. — DS
Technorati Tags: Australia, Bali, China, climate change, emissions reduction, emissions trading, global warming, Indonesia, IPCC, Penny Wong, UN, UNFCCC, USA
