Day 4 at the UN climate talks in Bonn

There are just two days of negotiations left, and much work remains. On Thursday afternoon, the talks’ two co-chairs took stock of how far the negotiations had moved since the start of this session, offering government negotiators a stern reality check. Their main tasks were to deliver clarity of what countries’ climate action commitments should include, and clarity on how to ramp-up climate action before those commitment periods take effect (ie between now and 2020, or ‘pre-2020 ambition’). But with time quickly running out, co-chair Artur Runge-Metzger acknowledged that the “ambition to finalise the two decisions is no longer possible in Bonn, they will have to be finalised in Lima;” when countries meet again at COP20 in December. He stressed that while “extensive exchanges” had taken place on many issues, countries had “not touched on many important things” and that co-operation must accelerate in the coming days.

Much of the current frustration in Bonn focuses on delegates attempts to find common ground on the pledges they will submit as part of the 2015 global climate agreement - their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs). After discussions yesterday were characterised by some as “demoralising”, divisions between countries remained strong throughout the morning. Frustrated, co-chair Kishan Kumarsingh called on delegates to “look yourselves in the eye; ask yourself if we are on track.”

While some negotiators characterized the slow pace of progress as an opportunity to brainstorm, share ideas and better understand where different countries were coming from on their national pledges, our partners are ramping up pressure to turn ‘brainstorming’ and idea-sharing into something far more concrete.

NGOs are also calling on governments to hasten progress on pre-2020 ambition; namely by ratifying the much fought for second commitment period for the Kyoto Protocol. Earlier in the week, UN climate chief Christiana Figueres said only 18 countries have ratified to date - and only one of those countries came from the developed world. Our partners warned that the Kyoto Protocol “languishes in legal limbo” and called on other countries to “follow the lead of these 18 Parties and ratify”, ensuring a future for what many see as a vital tool for ramping up pre-2020 ambition.

Meanwhile in Brussels, EU Heads of Government met this afternoon for a highly-anticipated meeting that could decide the contents of the bloc’s own INDC (Intended Nationally Determined Contributions); making it the first on the table in the context of a 2015 agreement. However, divisions within the EU mean it’sstill too soon to tell whether the decision in Brussels could help unlock ambition in Bonn. Talking to RTCC, Chilean envoy, Andrew Pirazzoli stressed that what “the EU decides will set the tone for all the developed countries”. Meanwhile Quamrul Choudhury, lead negotiator for Bangladesh said “if the EU takes a lead and raises ambition then reaching a deal in Paris is easy.” With so much at stake, all eyes will be on Brussels tomorrow, when the decision is expected to be announced.

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