Brussels, 19/07/2001 (Agence Europe) - In the absence of a breakthrough in the negotiations in Bonn, led by the experts of 180 countries (see EUROPE of 18 July, p.6), it will be up to the Environment ministers, that took over on Thursday, or the Heads of State of the G8, gathered in Genoa on Friday, who will have to provide a political impetus to try to reach agreement on the ways of implementing the Kyoto Protocol and save this international instrument threatened by the United States and its Allies.
Jan Pronk, Dutch Environment minister, who is chairing the negotiating session (COP6 16-27 July), refuses to give in to the prevailing pessimism, considering that an agreement is still possible as long as no decisive actor has officially followed the Americans in denouncing the treaty aimed at imposing on industrialised countries a reduction of 5.2% of their total emission of greenhouse gases for 2008-2012 in relation to the levels reached in 1990. "An agreement is possible. My hopes grow daily", declared Olivier Deleuze, Belgian Energy Minister and President of the Union Council, and Margot Wallstrom, Commissioner for the Environment welcomed the signs indicating, according to her, that countries are prepared to engage in genuine negotiations. Mr Deleuze recalled the readiness of the Union for compromises with all the partners to reach, in Bonn, a balanced package for the implementation of the Protocol to lead to true reductions in greenhouse gases and that equity and solidarity with the developing countries be guaranteed. Feeling that we cannot allow ourselves another failure, the Commissioner welcomed the fact that the Americans, rather discrete, do not block the negotiations. However, nothing is given. The Americans have confirmed that they had come to Bonn with empty hands, and the uncertain outcome of the negotiation (Japan whose position is determining for the protocol to have a chance of being ratified, clearly let it be known that an agreement was not possible before the COP7 in October in Marrakech) opens the door to a rise in the stakes. Japan, Canada, Australia and Russia, are thus trying to obtain the maximum number of concessions, by calling for the possibility of an increased use of carbon sinks (ability of forests to absorb carbon), over the achievement of the targets, or even to be able to introduce nuclear energy into the technology transfers towards developing countries under the clean development mechanism - an option radically excluded during the conference in The Hague, and which the Union and the organisations defending the environment do not want to hear talk of. According to a Greenpeace representative, the introduction of nuclear energy would constitute the most violent attack possible against the environmental integrity of the Kyoto Protocol.
Unless there is a signal from the G8, the prospects for progress seem minimum. The message was put across in Genoa, on Wednesday during the meeting between the Belgian Minister for Foreign Affairs Louis Michel, and his Japanese counterpart Tanaka. In fact, the Europeans expressed the desire to continue the work with the Japanese for the Union and Japan to send "together a clear signal to the world in the fight against climatic change".