Copenhagen agreement or no, there is one certainty: the negotiations that must carry on into next year will be even tougher than the two years of talks that led up to this landmark -summit. The Copenhagen meeting was intended, when it was decided on two years ago, to produce the world's first truly global agreement on climate change, one that would bind all countries - developed and developing - to take action on their greenhouse gas emissions.
But the fortnight of volatile negotiations in Denmark, and the year of intensive talks that preceded them, have clearly demonstrated the extraordinary complexity of more than 190 countries agreeing on such a difficult long-term issue as climate change. The prospect of continuing this process for several more months and possibly years appalled officials from many countries and the United Nations. What concerns some is that when these negotiations continue next year, many of the fragile alliances built up here will break down again.
The north-south divide at these talks has also been clear. Many developing countries have taken the attitude that climate change is a moral issue, caused by developed countries and it should be solved at their cost. This argument frustrates developed countries.
(Source: The Financial Times Limited)
(Image source: Askehbl.wordpress.com)
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