NEW DELHI: With the revised draft of the climate agreement failing to resolve differences between the developed and developing nations, negotiators from countries across the world were huddled together to iron out sticky points, with just 24 hours left for the Summit to end.
The negotiations are expected to stretch late into the night and a revised version of the 29-page draft is expected late Thursday or early Friday.
Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar expressed India’s disappointment at the draft stating that issues like climate finance and differentiation remain far from resolved. He also expressed surprise at the non-inclusion of INDCs, climate justice and sustainable lifestyles in the draft. French President Francois Hollande admitted “difficulties”, especially on financing part.
“There are still difficulties, we are aware of them, on financing... There is also some resistance, particularly in relation to compensation for climate-inflicted) loss and damage. We also need to ensure the commitments are not too far into the future,” Hollande said. “It is important in this last phase that we remind the negotiators why they are here. They are not there simply in the name of their countries... they are there to sort out the issue of the future of the planet,” he added.
Meanwhile, Javadekar met US Secretary of State John Kerry and later called the meeting ‘productive’ and said he was hopeful of ‘more convergence.’
Experts have already said the Paris climate summit now requires a political solution to break the deadlock. Kerry’s meeting with Javadekar and US President Barack Obama’s call to Prime Minister Narendra Modi are seen as part of those efforts.
India has pointed out that a durable agreement cannot be crafted by diluting historical responsibilities or by putting the polluters and the victims at the same level.
India has also made it clear that the agreement “must carefully” balance climate ambition and the principle of differentiation as both are equally important and one cannot have one without the other.