UN expects US to commit to fight against climate change (2nd Roundup)

Nov 4, 2009, 15:40 GMT

Barcelona - The United Nations' top climate change official said Wednesday he expected the United States to table concrete proposals against global warming at December's Copenhagen climate conference.

The US Senate was expected to reach an agreement on a law proposal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the coming week, Yvo de Boer quoted a Senate foreign affairs spokesman as having told him.

Washington would announce concrete goals on emission cuts and financial support to poorer countries in the fight against climate change, de Boer said in Barcelona, where UN climate negotiators were meeting for the third day.

This week's negotiations in the Spanish city are the final round of talks before the Copenhagen conference attempts to replace the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on December 7-18.

Despite the hopes expressed by de Boer, the United States did not appear willing to reveal in Barcelona what its position will be in Copenhagen, according to sources at the meeting.

The European Union wanted the Copenhagen conference to adopt a legally binding agreement, Spanish negotiator Alicia Montalvo said.

Unlike the Kyoto Protocol, the new system would penalize countries which failed to meet targets, she explained. There were, however, 'doubts' about whether there was enough time to reach a deal, Montalvo admitted.

The parties were still far from agreeing on the funding of sustainable development in poorer countries, EU negotiator Artur Runge-Netzger admitted.

Dozens of demonstrators briefly blocked entries to the conference building, displaying a banner reading: 'Without drastic reduction, there is no way out.'

African and other developing countries Tuesday protested what they regarded as advanced industrialized countries' unwillingness to make clear commitments, threatening to boycott the meeting.

Negotiators then agreed to create new working groups to discuss greenhouse emission cuts by rich nations. De Boer described the talks as progressing well.

Africa was already suffering from the consequences of climate change, while developed countries did not want to make clear what they were prepared to do to stop it, Algerian representative Kamal Djemouai said earlier.

Developing countries' representatives were especially critical of the United States, which has not signed the Kyoto Protocol, as well as Canada, Russia, Australia and the EU.

Developing countries want advanced industrialized nations to curb emissions by at least 40 per cent from 1990 levels by 2020. Montalvo said the EU was offering a 30 per cent reduction if an agreement was reached in Copenhagen.

Green parties have announced a global campaign to demand firm pledges in Copenhagen.