About 40 world leaders plan to go to Copenhagen next month to boost the chances of clinching a UN climate plan, the United Nations said on Friday as preparatory talks wound down with scant progress. Developing nations in Barcelona accused rich nations of lowering ambitions by suggesting extra time of up to a year to tie up details of a UN pact to fight global warming.
-- Barcelona talks make little progress
- -Copenhagen deal must be legally binding-developing nations
They said Copenhagen must still achieve a legally binding deal. Inviting world leaders to the end of the Copenhagen meeting on December 7-18 could help overcome disputes, Yvo de Boer, head of the UN Climate Change Secretariat, told a news conference on the final day of the week-long Barcelona talks.
"I think that we must capitalise in Copenhagen by inviting world leaders to give the Copenhagen outcome the final push," he said. "My understanding is that 40 heads of state have indicated their intention to be present. It really is a good spread of countries North and South."
They included British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, leaders of African nations and from the Caribbean. Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen has said he is undecided on whether to invite world leaders. Barcelona made little progress, re-opening a rich-poor divide and criticism of the United States for not tabling a formal carbon-cutting offer as part of a world-wide assault meant to slow more droughts, wildfires, extinction's and rising seas.
"Developed countries are acting as a brake towards any meaningful progress" said Lumumba Stanislaus Di-Aping of Sudan, chair of the Group of 77 and China, representing poor nations. He said any Copenhagen deal had to be more than political statement. "It would be a mockery to pretend in Copenhagen that a political statement is sufficent."
African nations say people are already dying because of a changing climate. De Boer said that Copenhagen should at least set 2020 greenhouse gas emissions goals for rich nations, agree actions by the poor to slow their rising emissions, ways to raise billions in funding and mechanisms to oversee funds. "I believe that the US can commit to a number in Copenhagen," de Boer said.
A controversial US climate change bill cleared its first hurdle in the US Senate on Thursday, but Democrats are likely to fall far short of their goal of passing legislation in the full Senate before Copenhagen as Boxer's bill lacks enough support for full approval. That would make it difficult for the United States to offer an internationally binding emissions reduction target in December, it may face blame for any failure in Copenhagen.
European Union and some other delegates from developed nations said this week a UN climate treaty may need an extra year or more beyond the original December deadline, to tie down details. African nations in Barcelona boycotted the start of some of the talks, saying that planned climate action by the developed world was insufficient. They won support from many developing nations and environmental groups.