Last week the UN published an encouraging announcement of the tentative text for the Paris climate change agreement negotiated by 194 nations during the February Geneva Talks.
Michael Barone, a senior political analyst with the Washington Examiner and a contributor to Fox News is not optimistic that a final agreement will be reached.
“I expect very little to be accomplished through these initiatives,” he told the Epoch Times.
According to the UN, “The negotiating text covers the substantive content of the new agreement,” which is expected to be finalized at the climate change summit in Paris this December.
But in the months leading up to the Paris summit, several more negotiation sessions will be held “to narrow down options and reach consensus on the content.”
These additional meetings are intended to provide the countries an opportunity to communicate through numerous channels at all levels, “seamlessly,” said Christiana Figueres, executive secretary of the UN Framework on Climate Change.
Barone doesn’t think an agreement can be reached in December, despite the numerous planned talks and here’s why:
“The governments of China and India are not going to agree to hobble their growing economies, and therefore a global agreement on limiting carbon dioxide emissions is simply not going to happen,” he stated.
In November 2014, China made a joint announcement with the United States stating the shared commitment to reaching an agreement with other countries at the Paris summit.
India made a similar joint announcement with the United States in January.
Further negotiations will be conducted at the Climate Change Conference in Bonn this June, August, and October. Additional ministerial meetings will be held at Major Economies Forum, Petersburg Climate Dialogue, and African Ministerial Conference of the Environment, where climate change is expected to be a topic of discussion.
Climate change discussions will also continue at the upcoming G7 and G20 meetings.
