Climate talks – More Divisions than Unanimity

Talks have once again started in Peru and it is the final day of an important UN Climate summit which hopes to ratify a new global treaty. Negotiators are coming together to thrash out a text which would then serve as the basis for a new treaty which will be signed in Paris 2015.

However the long running feud between the rich and poor continue to hamper progress. The situation is aptly described by US Secretary of State John Kerry who said the world was “still on a course leading to tragedy”, and the deal was “not an option, an urgent necessity”.

The climate talks in Lima have been focused on two major issues- The first major issue is the developing countries resisting calls to cut their emissions and the second issue, the developing nation want the rich nations to pay money to help the developing countries for adapting to a changing planet.

This brings to the fore the question – Should the rich nations barter poor countries reduce emissions in return for more climate aid?

Developing countries have a high moral ground when they ask for compensation for cutting down emissions and adopt greener technology. The US and the other highly industrialized nations have produced the largest share of CO2 and other green house gasses into the atmosphere with the developing countries far behind. There is little which small island nations such as Kiribati can do as the floodwater rise and droughts increase as a result of Global warming.

On the other hand Western countries are asking for greater emissions reductions from large developing countries — not just China, but also India, Brazil and Indonesia. Without their cooperation, it is not possible for taking steps to reduce global warming and its consequences.

However development is a big issue with emerging economies like Brazil and India.

India’s power minister, Piyush Goyal, was quoted as saying by the New York Times, “India’s development imperatives cannot be sacrificed at the altar of potential climate changes many years in the future. The West will have to recognize, we have the needs of the poor.”

So incentives have to be in place before asking the developing economies to cut emissions. European nations want India to clean up its coal based power plants, they will have to shoulder some costs for this to happen.