Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

UN Climate Talks Drift Into Overtime In Push To Save 1.5 Celsius Goal

UN Climate Talks Drift Into Overtime In Push To Save 1.5 Celsius Goal

Saudi Arabia, the world's second largest oil producer and considered among the nations most resistant to strong wording on fossil fuels, said the latest draft was "workable".

Two weeks of U.N. COP26 climate talks in Glasgow blew past a deadline on Friday as the conference president called on countries to make a final push to secure commitments that would rein in the rising temperatures that threaten the planet.

With a deal now expected sometime on Saturday, there remained tough talking to be done on issues such as the phasing out of fossil fuel subsidies, carbon markets and financial help for poor countries to tackle climate change.

A draft of the final deal, released early on Friday, requires countries to set tougher climate pledges next year - in an attempt to bridge the gap between current targets and the much deeper cuts scientists say are needed this decade to avert catastrophic climate change.

"We have come a long way over the past two weeks and now we need that final injection of that 'can-do' spirit, which is present at this COP, so we get this shared endeavour over the line," said Britain's COP26 President Alok Sharma.

Late on Friday Sharma announced that meetings would continue into Saturday, and that he expected a deal later in the day. A revised draft of the agreement would be released Saturday morning to kick off the last round of talks, he said.

The meeting's overarching aim is to keep within reach the 2015 Paris Agreement's aspirational target to cap global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, the limit scientists say would avert its worst effects.

Under current national pledges to cut emissions this decade, researchers say the world's temperature would soar far beyond that limit, unleashing catastrophic sea level rises, droughts, storms and wildfires.

The new draft is a balancing act - trying to take in the demands of the most climate-vulnerable nations such as low-lying islands, the world's biggest polluters, and countries whose exports of fossil fuels are vital to their economies.

"China thinks the current draft still needs to go further to strengthen and enrich the parts about adaptation, finance, technology, and capacity building," said Zhao Yingmin, the climate negotiator for the world's largest greenhouse gas emitter.

The draft retained its most significant demand for nations to set tougher climate pledges next year, but couched that request in weaker language than before, while failing to offer the rolling annual review of climate pledges that some developing countries have sought.

Nations are currently required to revisit their pledges every five years.

WEAKER LANGUAGE


The latest proposal included slightly weaker language than a previous one in asking states to phase out subsidies of the fossil fuels - coal, oil and gas - that are the prime manmade cause of global warming.

That dismayed some campaigners, while others were relieved that the first explicit reference to fossil fuels at any U.N. climate summit was in the text at all, and hoped it would survive the fierce negotiations to come.

"It could be better, it should be better, and we have one day left to make it a lot, lot better," Greenpeace said.

"Right now, the fingerprints of fossil fuel interests are still on the text and this is not the breakthrough deal that people hoped for in Glasgow."

Some thinktanks were more upbeat, pointing to progress on financing to help developing countries deal with the ravages of an ever-hotter climate.

Saudi Arabia, the world's second largest oil producer and considered among the nations most resistant to strong wording on fossil fuels, said the latest draft was "workable".

A final deal will require the unanimous consent of the nearly 200 countries that signed the Paris accord.

To increase pressure for a strong deal, protesters rallied outside the COP26 venue, where activists had hung ribbons with messages imploring delegates to protect the Earth.

The latest draft acknowledged scientists say the world must cut carbon dioxide emissions by 45% from 2010 levels by 2030, and to net zero by "around mid-century" to hit the 1.5C target.

This would effectively set the benchmark to measure future climate pledges.

Currently, countries' pledges would see global emissions increase by nearly 14% by 2030 from 2010 levels, according to the U.N.

'INSANITY'


Fossil fuel subsidies remain a bone of contention. Kerry told reporters that trying to curb global warming while governments spend hundreds of billions of euros supporting the fuels that cause it was "a definition of insanity".

Financial support is also hotly debated, with developing countries pushing for tougher rules to ensure rich nations whose historical emissions are largely responsible for heating up the planet, offer more cash to help them adapt to its consequences.

Rich countries have failed to meet a 12-year-old goal to provide $100 billion a year in so-called "climate finance" by 2020, undermining trust and making some developing countries more reluctant to curb their emissions.

The sum, which falls far short of what the UN says countries would actually need, aims to address "mitigation", to help poor countries with their ecological transition, and "adaptation", to help them manage extreme climate events.

The new draft said that, by 2025, rich countries should double from current levels the funding set aside for adaptation - a step forward from the previous version that did not set a date or a baseline.

"This is a stronger and more balanced text than what we had two days ago," Helen Mountford of the World Resources Institute said of the current draft.

"We need to see what stands, what holds and how it looks in the end - but at the moment it's looking in a positive direction."

Of roughly $80 billion rich countries spent on climate finance for poor countries in 2019, only a quarter was for adaptation.

A more contentious aspect, known as "loss and damage" would compensate them for the ravages they have already suffered from global warming, though this is outside the $100 billion and some rich countries do not acknowledge the claim.

A group of vulnerable nations including the Marshall Islands in the central Pacific said the final deal needed to do more to address the question. "Loss and damage is too central for us to settle for workshops," said Tina Stege, the Marshall Islands' climate envoy.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
EU Proposes Phasing Out Russian Oil and Gas by End of 2027 to End Energy Dependence
More Than 150,000 Followers for a Fictional Character: The New Influencers Are AI Creations
EU Prepares for War
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
‘Looks Like a Wig’: Online Users Express Concern Over Kate Middleton
Florida’s Vaccine Revolution: DeSantis Declares War on Mandates
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
"The Situation Has Never Been This Bad": The Fall of PepsiCo
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
The Fashion Designer Who Became an Italian Symbol: Giorgio Armani Has Died at 91
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Druzhba Pipeline Incident Sparks Geopolitical Tensions
Cost of Opposition Leader Péter Magyar's Economic Plan Revealed
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Budapest Central European Fashion Week Kicks Off
U.S. Celebrates Labor Day
Hungarian National Team Captain Scores Epic Goal
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
×