Until late Tuesday, ministers were struggling to break the deadlock in global climate talks in Copenhagen, three days before world leaders are expected to seal the accord.
"In these very hours we are balancing between success and failure," said the Danish president of the two-week meeting, Connie Hedegaard, at the opening of the high-level phase of the talks.
"Three years of effort have come down to three days of action," UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said. "Let us not falter on the home stretch. No one will get everything they want in this negotiation."
However, Ki-moon poured cold water on the meeting's chances of success by suggesting that an agreement on financial aid to poor countries might have to be delayed. "We can start next year discussing this matter," Mr Ban said in an interview with the Financial Times newspaper.
"I'm not quite sure [we can get a long-term financing number] … I don't think the exact number itself should be all of this Copenhagen deal. There are many important issues," he said. "If they are not able to agree this time at Copenhagen, then there needs to be some initial arrangement [on financing]."
Developing countries have repeatedly said a deal on aid was an essential element for the Copenhagen negotiations.
Leaders arrive on Friday
On Friday, about 130 world leaders are set to attend the summit's final session.
After a suspension of several hours the previous day, talks were stalled on Tuesday over disputes about the level of emissions cuts by rich countries and a long-term global target to curb a rise in global temperatures which could trigger rising sea levels, floods and drought.
"Success is within reach. But [...] I must also warn you: We can fail," said Hedegaard.
Draft texts released on Monday (14 December) showed national negotiators had stripped out figures for long-term global goals and rich nation emissions cuts by 2020 from last week's UN texts. The numbers could be re-inserted if agreement is reached.
Environment ministers have today sent a clear signal to developing countries that they have no intention of increasing greenhouse gas emission reduction targets in line with what climate science shows is necessary, said Marin Kaiser, climate policy adviser with Greenpeace International.
Major US businesses including Microsoft, Dow Chemical and GE called for tough US emissions cuts which would mobilise a shift to a greener economy.
"There's a great deal yet to do, the parties are quite far apart on a fair number of issues," said Todd Stern, US special envoy for climate change, adding he did not expect any change in US targets for emission curbs during the talks.
The Copenhagen talks, which Ban described as among the most complex and ambitious ever to be undertaken by the world community, have stumbled over a long-running rich-poor rift on addressing the threat of climate change.
China, India, Brazil and South Africa coordinate positions
A "BASIC" group of China, India, Brazil and South Africa was "coordinating positions almost on an hourly basis," India's Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said, reinforcing the entrenched rich-poor positions.
South African Environment Minister Buyelwa Sonjica, speaking for the group, said rich nation pledges for emissions cuts were "less than ambitious and [...] inconsistent with the science."
Developing nations also want the industrialized world to pay poorer countries to prepare for and slow climate change.
Japan would offer $10 billion in aid over three years to 2012 to help developing countries fight global warming, including steps to protect biodiversity, a Japanese newspaper said on Tuesday. The European Union has offered a similar sum.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy said in Paris that he hoped US President Barack Obama supported "fast-start" aid for developing countries. "President Obama often speaks about his links with Africa, it is time to show it," he said.
British Energy and Climate Minister Ed Miliband, chair with Ghana of a group looking at the funding promises, said: "There are clearly still issues about the scale of public finance and what can be committed to at this point."
He pointed to wide divergence in positions. "The G77 [group of developing nations] wants 0.5% of GDP - I don't think we're going to achieve that. The European Union has its figures, 22-50 billion euros in 2020."
(EurActiv with Reuters.)
