France hopeful on climate deal after rocky start to UN talks
Prospects for a UN deal in Paris in December meant to mark a "turning point" in slowing climate change have brightened after an acrimonious start to the final preparatory talks in Germany, France said on October 20.
Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said there was a growing consensus that national pledges for curbing greenhouse gas emissions beyond 2020, the building blocks of a deal in Paris, should be reviewed and toughened every five years.
"The climate ... is positive" for a deal in Paris despite acrimony between many nations on October 19 over a pared-down draft agreement for Paris that had cut out many governments' core demands, he told a news conference in Bonn.
Fabius, who will lead the summit, said a deal would not solve all problems but could put the world on track for a shift from fossil fuels towards greener energy.
"It's a turning point," he said of the planned deal in Paris at the November 30-December 11 summit.
Delegates said the mood was better after the week-long Bonn talks opened on October 19 with many developing nations objecting to a pared-down 20-page draft agreement, drawn up by senior diplomats, that omitted core demands.
Overnight the text swelled to 34 pages with all nations allowed to make additions, such as developing nations' calls for an increase in aid after 2020 and assurances that the rich will lead in making deep cuts in emissions.
That text is still far more manageable than an original that had run to 80 pages, outlining ways to limit emissions to avert heatwaves, floods and rising seas.