Climate Conference Gears Grinding - China: US Stance "Totally Unacceptable" - Guardian

[hatrack]

The world's two biggest carbon emitters clashed at UN climate talks in China today as the United States' top climate envoy accused his counterparts of trying to renegotiate last year's global climate agreement, and threatened to pursue alternatives to the United Nations negotiation track. China retaliated by calling the US's overall negotiating stance "totally unacceptable."

Jonathan Pershing, the US deputy special envoy for climate change, said the first three days of talks in Tianjin had yielded disappointing results because participants were revisiting old arguments over procedure rather than building on the Copenhagen accord. "What is frustrating in these negotiations is to see countries not using that as the basis, but relitigating things that we more resolved over the course of the Copenhagen negations," he said. His comments underline the wide differences between nations despite efforts to try to identify common ground this week so that a partial agreement can be signed at a ministerial level meeting in Cancún later this year.

Given the slow rate of progress, Pershing said there was a concern that no agreement would be possible in Mexico. Echoing comments made this week by EU negotiators, he said it could damage the UN system. "It something to be considered seriously, because the process is going to be very hard-pressed to continue to meet and to continue to have these enormous sessions with a lot of people travelling to them unless we can use the process to good effect," he said. "It may mean that we don't use this process exclusively as the way to move forward."

While there is no suggestion of a full withdrawal from the UN process, the US appears to have hardened its position since Copenhagen amid rising domestic political pressure and the absence of climate legislation. China has responded in kind. Dropping the diplomatic language that characterised public statements on the first two days, Xie Zhenhua, the head of the host's negotiating team, made little attempt to conceal the target of his frustration.

EDIT

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/oct/06/china-climate-talks-us-negotiator

[Nathanael]

1. Odds?

What do you think the odds are that Cancun's meetings end up with the same result as Copenhagen?

[hatrack]

2. I think it'll be a whole lot of nothing, with solid potential for sub-Copenhagen outcomes

Good thing they're offsetting their air miles . . .