Saturday, 19 December 2009Dozens of world leaders will be arriving in Copenhagen on Friday for the final day of United Nations talks on climate change.
Delegations from 193 countries have been negotiating at the UN Climate Change Conference since December 7, but observers say the countries have made little progress in reaching any meaningful deal to curb greenhouse gas emissions.
U.S. President Barack Obama landed in the Danish capital this morning, and is set to meet with the leaders of China, Russia, and Brazil, emerging economies seen as crucial in climate negotiations. His arrival follows Secretary of State Hillary's announcement that Washington would back a $100-billion global fund to reduce emissions from 2020.
The Kremlin said Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will deliver a brief speech, along with other leaders.
Russia's natural resources minister, Yury Trutnev, addressed the conference on Thursday, and stressed that no useful agreement can be reached without the cooperation of all countries.
"Today, the Kyoto protocol does not cover the countries with the highest emissions. Soon it will expire, and it must be replaced by a document that takes into account new realities, new obligations of countries to curb emissions, new mechanisms for meeting these obligations, and new mechanisms and volumes for financing and supporting developing countries," he said.
The Kyoto Protocol on cutting carbon emissions expires in 2012. The United States has not ratified the treaty, and although China and India have joined, they are not obliged by the protocol to reduce their emissions.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs earlier acknowledged that no legally binding pact is likely to be reached in Copenhagen, but that "a political agreement" could be reached that would later "lead to a treaty".
|
Saturday, 19 December 2009
|
|
