Brussels, 03/06/2013 (Agence Europe) - Another international climate negotiating session (3-14 on June) began in Bonn on Monday. The European Commission also indicated that the European Union is very hopeful that these negotiations will lead to ratcheting up the level of commitments from the various countries by 2020.
This experts' meeting paves the way to negotiations for the global climate agreement, which is due to be signed in 2015 before coming into force in 2020. It should help to develop the ways ahead already agreed at the previous meeting at the beginning of May on the arrangements for gradually beefing up currently inadequate commitments, by way of national mechanisms framed by guidelines approved by the international community and peer monitoring procedures. Overall, the agreement seeks to guarantee that the objective agreed in Copenhagen in 2009 for maintaining the average increase in planet surface temperature to below 2°C compared to 1990 is respected. The EU hopes that there will be a fleshing out of these discussions, which are crucial to ensuring countries guarantee that their commitments are respected. The EU also hopes that a draft decision calling on all countries in the world to promote the gradual elimination of hydro-fluorocarbons (fluoride gases that produce greenhouse gas emissions) will be included in the Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer and which is due to be amended at the end of June (see EUROPE 10856).
This negotiating session will also examine ways of reinforcing climate change adaptation through the future 2015 agreement.
At a domestic level, member states, EU institutions and all European stakeholders have until 26 June to give their view on how best to elaborate this new international climate agreement (which is legally binding) by responding to a consultative communication presented by the European Commission on 26 March last (see EUROPE 10815). (AN/transl.fl)