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Bonn,
June 11 2009.
Dear Friends, representatives of the Media,
I welcome this opportunity to meet the distinguished members of the media and
to share with you our assessment of the current state of play in the ongoing
negotiations leading upto Copenhagen, This will be a brief opening statement
so that we have more time for interaction and give you an opportunity to pose
any question that you may have.
In the Working Group on Long – Term Cooperative Action, we have completed the
second phase of our work and now possess a working document which should
enable delegations, in the third phase, to begin the exercise of formulating
convergent texts, wherever possible, and identifying areas which still need
further reflection and engagement. It is our conviction that as long as
delegations adhere to the principles and provisions of the UNFCCC and follow
faithfully, the mandate spelt out in the Bali Action Plan, a comprehensive,
balanced and equitable outcome in Copenhagen will be achieved. Let us not
forget the objective of these negotiations is not a new Climate Treaty, but
rather the enhanced implementation of the principles and provisions of the
existing and valid climate treaty, which is UNFCCC.
The parallel track being pursued at these negotiations
is the Kyoto Protocol track. Here again, there should be no ambiguity about
what our objective is. We are not negotiating a new Protocol. The Kyoto
Protocol does not cease to exist in 2012. It will remain valid and in effect
until such time as the State Parties decide to abrogate it or amend it or
decide to replace it with another legal instrument. This is not what these
current negotiations are about. They are about commitments on emission reductions,
to be assumed by developed country Parties, included in Annex I of the
Protocol, for the second commitment period which will commence in 2013. It is
a matter of deep regret that most Annex I countries are unlikely to meet
their emission reduction obligations set further for the first commitment
period. And it is a matter of even deeper concern that there has been hardly
any progress on the achieving the key objective of our negotiations, that is
to announce the second commitment period targets, which must be of a scale
equal to the challenge we face from global climate change. Some individual
targets that have been indicated fall far short of what is required, and
there are inadmissible attempts to abandon the agreed baseline for emission
reductions, which in the Protocol, is set at 1990. We hope that by the time
we return to Bonn in August, this unsatisfactory state of affairs, will
witness positive change. A Copenhagen outcome without clarity on this
important issue is unlikely.
In India, we have a new Government in office, headed by Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh. It
is our intention to put action on climate change among the list of key
priorities for the Government. We have completed the elaboration of most of
the National Missions included in the National Action Plan on Climate Change.
These detailed mission documents will now be considered by the Prime
Minister’s Council on Climate Change, chaired by the PM himself, before
implementation proceeds. The elaboration and prioritization of the remaining
Missions is being stepped up and should be completed shortly. Taken together,
these national missions will significantly enhance the ecological
sustainability of India’s growth, spur technological innovation, and ensure
that energy does not become a constraint on India’s ability to achieve the
scale of accelerated development it requires to eradicate poverty.
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