A UN conference trying to lay the groundwork for a new climate change pact is unlikely to win any binding pledge by the United States to cut greenhouse gas emissions, its head said Friday.
Developing nations are also likely to refuse to commit to mandatory targets on cutting emissions blamed for global warming, said Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the UN Convention on Climate Change.
He insisted talks had started “very enthusiastically” on Indonesia’s resort island of Bali aimed at nailing down negotiations on a new plan against global warming
At the same time, speaking to AFP, he acknowledged the deep divides within the international community on how to tackle the problem of the world heating up, notably on whether countries should be set binding targets.
“I think all the delegations have understood the urgency, but I also think that none of the delegations have forgotten their national interest,” he said on the sidelines of the meeting.
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jKny0EQt4SeTDI3OuOw_hq7LZJDw