U.N. chief says domestic politics undermine climate fight

Krittivas Mukherjee, Reuters 5 Feb 09;

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - A climate deal at Copenhagen may not be possible unless politicians take tough decisions without worrying about winning elections and compulsions of their domestic politics, the U.N. Secretary-General said on Thursday.

Ban Ki-moon said the situation had been compounded by the global financial downturn that was making it more difficult for the political leadership to take unpopular decisions.

"Their first priority maybe (is) to get elected first of all, whatever maybe the case," Ban told a conference on sustainable development in New Delhi. "But they must overcome and look beyond this personal political leadership. They have to demonstrate their leadership as a global leader.

"For political leaders, there is always clearly some political risks that they want to avoid. Political psychology in the midst of global financial crisis, global downturn, (is) they are very weak to the voters."

From rich nations to developing countries many are shelving ambitions for deep cuts or caps in greenhouse gas emissions as the economic slowdown overshadows the fight against climate change.

In countries such as India, the fourth-largest polluter in the world, climate change is hardly seen as an election issue and barely features on the agenda of political parties.

Ban called on political leaders to look beyond their domestic politics for a deal in Copenhagen. "We have to look at the whole generational issues. Therefore please look beyond your own domestic concerns and look for the future," he said.

About 190 countries are trying to craft a broader climate treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol that only binds wealthy nations to emissions targets between 2008 and 2012.

The new deal is due to be wrapped in Copenhagen by December.

Ban said Copenhagen's success depended on how the political leadership responded to three main challenges.

"First, Copenhagen must clarify commitments of developed countries to reduce their emissions, by setting ambitious mid-term targets, with credible baselines.

"We must also achieve clarity on what mitigation actions developing countries will be prepared to make."

Alongside, Copenhagen must advance on the issue of financing the mitigation and adaptation needs of developing countries, he said.

"Thirdly, governments, as well as the U.N. system must come up with credible solutions for the governance of new funds, and for their implementation response."

UN chief addresses climate change conference
Yasmeen Mohiuddin Yahoo News 5 Feb 09;

NEW DELHI (AFP) – UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned Thursday that failure to tackle climate change would lead to global economic upheaval, as he appealed to nations to reach agreement on carbon emission cuts.

"Deserts are spreading. Water scarcity is increasing. Tropical forests are shrinking. Our once prolific fisheries are in danger of collapse," said Ban at the start of a three-day conference in New Delhi on sustainable development.

"Failure to combat climate change will increase poverty and hardship. It will destabilise economies, breed insecurity in many countries and undermine our goals for sustainable development."

All countries must strive to reach a "conclusive carbon emissions reduction" deal in Copenhagen in December, he said at the meeting.

The gathering in the Danish capital is set to discuss initiatives aimed at tackling climate change when the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012.

"Copenhagen must clarify commitments of developed countries to reduce their emissions," said Ban, adding: "We must also achieve clarity on what mitigation actions developing countries will be prepared to make.

"In Copenhagen we must now bring all this all together in an ambitious, comprehensive and ratifiable agreement."

Much of the focus at the New Delhi conference will be on the United States, which was set to lay out President Barack Obama's new climate change policy, according to organisers.

John Kerry, chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was due to address the meeting via a video link.

The Obama administration has already begun shredding the climate policies formulated under ex-president George W. Bush and is vowing to lead the global fight against climate change.

Ban said Obama had assured him climate change was his "domestic as well as international priority" and also of Washington's "full cooperation to make Copenhagen a success."

He added he sensed a new worldwide momentum to address climate change.

"Here in India, in China, in the economies of Europe and North America, in Brazil, and also in many regions in Africa I find a new determination and new initiatives," he said, but cautioned there was no time to waste.

"Science has shown we are depleting the planet?s natural assets at an unsustainable rate," Ban said. "We all realise poverty cannot be overcome if we neglect the environment or deplete our natural capital."

Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee said New Delhi was "extremely concerned about climate change."

At the same time, he told the meeting "some of the worst impacts of climate change take place in developing countries which have had no share in having caused this problem."

India, China and other emerging economies have long argued industrialised nations are historically responsible for greenhouse gases already in the atmosphere and so must do more to fix the problem.

They have resisted targeted curbs on their own carbon emissions, claiming their ascent from poverty could be jeopardised by a straitjacket on their carbon emissions.

Developing countries were excluded from binding targets for greenhouse gases under the 1997 Kyoto Protocol -- the key reason the US refused to ratify the treaty.

However, activists say ensuring China and India take action now has become vital because their carbon output has risen dramatically with the booms in their fossil fuel-dependent economies.

China now outstrips the US as the world's biggest greenhouse gas polluter while India is poised to overtake Russia as the third biggest emitter, according to a report last September by the Global Carbon Project.