Meeting for an extraordinary Council in Brussels on Friday 30 September, the European ministers for the environment unanimously gave their political agreement for the EU to ratify the Paris Agreement next week, under an unprecedented ratification procedure that will mean that the EU will not have to wait for the ratification instruments of all 28 to be submitted simultaneously. This is a first for a joint agreement, but will not set a precedent.
The move has been made possible by the unanimous approval of a joint statement of the Council, the member states and the Commission, giving the member states guarantees, for instance on the unique nature of this procedure, which is justified by the urgency (see EUROPE 11635). The text underwent a few minor changes which required a session to be broken off, but Poland, which is highly dependent on coal and wanted this to be taken into account and was concerned about how the burden would be shared out between the member states in reaching the climate targets of the EU, was finally able to come on board. Poland had submitted the national ratification text to its parliament the day before.
If all goes well, the Council of the EU will be able to formally approve the ratification decision as soon as the Parliament has given its blessing, which it will do in Strasbourg on Tuesday 4 October. This blessing is in no doubt. The formal decision of the Council will be made by written procedure within 24 hours, which will allow the EU and the member states that have concluded their ratification procedures to submit their ratification instruments together on 5 October in the best-case scenario, or on 7 October in the worst. This will be in time for the EU to be a party to the Agreement as soon as it enters into force in the very near future and will allow it to take an active role in both the first conference of the parties and COP 22, which will open in Marrakesh on 7 November.
This unanimous decision, which will allow the EU to hold onto the leading role it had in COP 21, has been hailed as historic, as was the Paris Agreement concluded on 12 December of last year, proving that in times of crisis, the EU can find a solution. This bodes well for the climate, but it bodes well for the EU, too.
"I called this extraordinary meeting with a bold objective in mind: to ratify at EU level as soon as possible. Two weeks after the informal summit of Bratislava, one of our greatest priorities has been satisfied. Each country is in a specific situation, but we will ratify as soon as possible. Together with Miguel Arias Canete, I will submit the EU's ratification instrument. We call upon all the member states to join us. Had we not joined forces, we would not have been able to make this decision", said a delighted Laslo Solymos, the Slovakian minister for the environment and president of the Environment Council, after the session. Although the ratification is only a step towards the implementation of the Paris Agreement, the Council's agreement is, he said, historical for the future.
Europe had a near miss, but its honour will soon be safe. In response to anyone who doubted that the EU would be able to ratify in time, European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Canete said that he was delighted that all doubt had now been dispelled. "They said Europe is too complicated to agree quickly. They said we had too many hoops to jump through. They said we were all talk. Today's decision shows what Europe is all about: unity and solidarity as member states take the European approach, just as we did in Paris", he said, adding that all would be ready to table their ratification instruments on 5 October.
So far, 61 countries representing 40% of global emissions have ratified the Agreement and we are very close to breaking the second threshold, the commissioner said, pointing out that so far, seven member states of the EU have either already ratified (France, Hungary, Austria, Slovakia) or are just about to conclude their national procedures (Germany, Malta and Portugal). With India (4.1% of global emissions), which has announced its ratification of the 2 October, things will be looking good to reach at least 55% of global emissions, not counting Canada and Australia, which may also act quickly.
The Paris Agreement, which was concluded just nine months ago, may therefore enter into force less than six months after it was signed. The Kyoto Protocol took eight years. The commissioner said that the EU had not waited to ratify before translating its target (cutting its emissions by at least 40% by 2030 compared to 1990 figures) into legislative proposals, which are already on the table.
Ségolène Royal, the French minister and President of COP 21, who pushed for the EU to ratify ahead of COP 22, is delighted. She said that no international agreement has ever been applied so quickly, adding that the climate emergency would not wait for procedural complications. She went on to say that the EU was part of climate history and stressed that this had been her objective as President of COP 21, preferably ahead of COP 22. "This was not a foregone conclusion, as energy models differ. We have to provide reassurances on sticking to the objective of cutting emissions by at least 40% by 2030".
Quoted in a press release, Jean-Claude Juncker said that "today's decision shows that the European Union delivers on promises made. It demonstrates that the member states can find common ground when it is clear that acting together, as part of the European Union, their impact is bigger than the mere sum of its parts".
Marginal assurances to appease Poland. A reiteration, in a joint statement, of the conclusions of the European Council of October 2014 stating that all elements of the 'Climate/energy 2030 framework' would, if necessary, be re-examined at the highest level, played a decisive role in getting Poland behind the agreement. The assurances that the European Council would continue to provide strategic orientations if necessary, particularly as regards the ETS and non-ETS sectors, energy interconnections and efficiency, also appeased this member state, as did a reference to the fact that any member state may ask for any issue regarding these various points to be included on the agenda of the European Council. A new paragraph has also been added, stating that the emissions level allocated to each member state under the Climate/energy framework will be laid down on the basis of the need to take into account the specifics of the energy mix of each individual member state. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)