Une réunion de l’ONU décide d’une feuille de route sur le climat[en] 

The first concerted international response to climate change was launched in 1992 at the Rio Earth Summit, which led to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), a non-binding treaty that 'encourages' developed states to stabilise greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. 

189 countries have signed and ratified the UNFCCC. Most of the UNFCCC parties, with the notable exception of the US, also signed and ratified the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, a legally-binding treaty that commits signatories to specific GHG reductions with the aim of reaching a 5% global reduction of GHGs by 2012 compared to 1990 levels. 

At the 13th Conference of the UNFCCC Parties (COP 13), held in Bali, Indonesia from 3 to 15 December, negotiators agreed to work towards a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, projecting that the new framework should be completed by December 2009 at a Conference in Copenhagen (EurActiv 17/12/07). 

However, the biggest challenge to an effective post-2012 climate agreement will be to bring all major world emitters of global-warming gases – including the US, but also emerging economies such as China and India – into the new pact. 

The UN Bangkok Climate Change Talks ended on 4 April, with an agreement on an 18-month work plan for negotiations on long-term greenhouse gas emissions targets. The programme also addresses stronger mitigation measures, adaptation to the impacts of climate change, the development and use of new low-carbon technologies and financing mechanisms.

Delegates agreed that the use of emissions trading, as well as the Clean Development Mechanism and Joint Implementation, should continue after the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012 – a move welcomed by UN climate chief Yvo de Boer as “an important signal to businesses”, who have been asking for clarity on this issue. 

No other major breakthroughs were achieved. Instead, the meeting concluded with an agreement on holding seven more meetings until December 2009, when all 189 signatories to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will gather in Copenhagen in the hope of thrashing out the final details of the post-2012 climate framework. 

Three of these meetings will be held in 2008, in Bonn, Germany, in June, then in Ghana in August, followed by Poznan, Poland, in December. 

"The train to Copenhagen has left the station," said UN climate chief Yvo de Boer. "Not only do we have the certainty that critical issues will be addressed this year, we now have the bite-sized chunks which will allow us to negotiate in an effective manner." 

But divisions among countries run deep and negotiations promise to be challenging, with disagreements present even at the Bangkok meeting. Indeed, Japan picked the event to make an early push in favour of a “sectoral” emissions reduction approach. Under such a scheme, targets would be set across national boundaries for specific energy-intensive industries, such as the steel or transport sectors. 

Proponents of this type of system, including EU business representatives, say it would be less harmful for their competitiveness, rewarding best performers and stimulating increased innovation and finance (EurActiv 22/02/08). 

But developing countries, including China and India argue it is an attempt to shift the burden from rich to poor nations. 

The Japanese move was criticised by the WWF, which warned that, by proposing even more constraints on developing nations, the country risked undermining the trust and cooperation needed to move negotiations forward. 

The NGO said Japan should first focus on cutting its own and other industrialised nations’ emissions by at least 25% by 2020 and called on Tokyo to use its role as host to the G8 meeting to achieve strong commitments. 

Despite these “disturbances”, the WWF concluded that the summit was nevertheless “constructive”. “The good news is that most parties have started to engage pro-actively,” said Shruti Shukla, WWF India’s climate and energy policy coordinator. But, she added: “The bad news is that many lack the level of preparation that is needed to successfully conclude the negotiations by the end of 2009. They will have to seriously step up their game by bringing concrete proposals to the table.” 

Elliot Diringer, Director of International Strategies at the Pew Center on Global Climate Change agreed that, “while the Bangkok talks managed to keep the momentum going, they also underscored the enormous challenges ahead”. He added: “The aim remains a new global deal in 2009, but it’s hard to leave Bangkok confident that deadline can be met.” 

“Parties will have to show new flexibility and a greater willingness to act,” he insisted, notably pointing the finger at the United States, whose “refusal to negotiate a binding emissions target remains the single largest obstacle to an effective climate agreement,” he said.