Secretary-General Confers With World Leaders On Climate Change
New York, Dec 30 2009 4:10PM Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has been speaking to numerous world leaders on the heels of
the historic United Nations conference in Copenhagen which recently wrapped up with nations reaching a political
agreement on climate change.
Following the summit’s end less than two weeks ago, Mr. Ban has made calls to leaders from countries such as China, the
United States, Ethiopia, the Maldives, Grenada, France, Brazil and Australia.
The Copenhagen Accord was struck in the Danish capital on 19 December after the Secretary-General intervened at the last
minute to assuage nations that felt they had been excluded from parts of the negotiations.
It aims to jump-start immediate action on climate change and guide negotiations on long-term action. It also includes an
agreement to working towards curbing global temperature rise to below 2 degrees Celsius, efforts to reduce or limit
emissions, and pledges to mobilize $100 billion a year for developing countries to combat climate change.
“While I am satisfied that we sealed a deal, I am aware that the outcome of the Copenhagen conference, including the
Copenhagen Accord, did not go as far as many have hoped,” Mr. Ban told reporters after returning to New York from
Denmark.
The two-week-long UN conference in Copenhagen, attended by more than 100 heads of State and government, was marked by
interruptions in negotiations due to divisions between States over transparency and other issues.
“The leaders were united in purpose, but they were not united in action,” Mr. Ban pointed out, exhorting world leaders
to act in concert to ensure that a legally binding treaty is reached next year.
Nonetheless, he said that the talks “represent a beginning – an essential beginning,” because without nations hammering
out a deal in Copenhagen, the financial and technical support for poorer nations agreed upon would not take immediate
effect.
ENDS