India, China urge rich world to fulfill their commitment to green fund, not dodge it
Vishwa Mohan,TNN | Dec 4, 2015, 06.27AM IST
We want the world to act urgently on climate change: PM Modi
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PARIS: Flagging the issue of finance as super-critical to the success of the climate change summit, a group of 134 countries, including India and China, said on Thursday emphasizing that the contributions of rich nations must be categorically stated.
"The (issue) of finance is critical ... It will make or break (the summit)", the group said. Articulating the united stand over the issue, which divides the developed and developing world, group chair ambassador Nozipho Mxakato-Diseko from South Africa said the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is explicit on what needs to be done.
READ ALSO:
2015 to be India's hottest year ever, says IMD
The G77 and China, which forms the biggest group in the ongoing Paris climate talks, on Wednesday strongly objected to attempts made by rich nations to dilute the Convention that call on developed countries to extend support to poorer nations.
It in its first formal statement, the group said, "The G77 and China is deeply concerned with the attempts to introduce economic conditions in the finance section currently under negotiation here in Paris".
Asked about the economic conditions, the chair on Thursday termed such a move by the rich nations as an attempt to escape from their responsibility as laid out in the Convention. She said, "These countries jumped out of the Kyoto protocol. They did not even ratify it...World should be asking these small group of countries (rich nations) what is their responsibility".
READ ALSO:
Delhi views on tech transfer, finance part of new draft
Though she was clearly referring to the US which initially signed but never ratified the protocol and also Canada which later opted out of the protocol, she chose not to call out the two.
Asked to name the countries, she said, "We don't name and shame them. But, they name us." Her remarks, on behalf of the entire 134 developing countries came just a day after the group flagged its concerns over the approach of rich nations towards finance.
She late on Wednesday evening said, "This approach is not consistent with the Convention, the mandate of the ADP and the sovereignty of Parties. Any attempt to replace the core obligation of developed countries to provide financial support to developing countries with a number of arbitrarily identified economic conditions is a violation of the rules-based multilateral process and threatens an outcome here in Paris".
The group on Wednesday expressed its concerns over the narrative which suggests that the world has changed since the UNFCCC was adopted in 1992 due to the dramatic economic development gains of some of the developing countries (China, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and UAE among others) and hence that it is time to expand the pool of so-called "donors" of climate "aid" and to narrow the list of those eligible to receive this "support" to only the "poorest of the poor".
"This narrative serves narrow national interests of developed countries and says little about reality. If the world has really changed so much, we ask why it is that after all these decades all our members remain developing countries with little or no voice in global decision-making processes and institutions", said the ambassador.
The G77 and China stressed that nothing under the UNFCCC can be achieved without the provision of means of implementation to enable developing countries to play their part to address climate change.
Mxakato-Diseko said that the full picture of financial arrangements for the enhanced implementation of the Convention kept on eluding the Group.
"We believe that it will help the process if all matters related to finance, whether it is under the Convention, the Kyoto Protocol and under the ADP (Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action) can be discussed in a comprehensive and coherent manner, regardless of where they will be reflected in the end, whether in the decision or the agreement", she said.
The group also emphasized that it is now time for all developed countries to convert their pledges to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) into contribution agreements, as well as scaling up commitments in the ADP process.
Under the Convention, developed countries are obliged to provide financial resources, including technology transfer and capacity building to all developing countries.
This is a legal obligation under the Convention. It is neither aid nor charity, nor is it the same as development assistance. Finance support from developed countries relates to the impacts of historical emissions, which will only get worse with time for developing countries.
Vishwa Mohan,TNN | Dec 4, 2015, 06.27AM IST
Text resize:
PARIS: Flagging the issue of finance as super-critical to the success of the climate change summit, a group of 134 countries, including India and China, said on Thursday emphasizing that the contributions of rich nations must be categorically stated.
"The (issue) of finance is critical ... It will make or break (the summit)", the group said. Articulating the united stand over the issue, which divides the developed and developing world, group chair ambassador Nozipho Mxakato-Diseko from South Africa said the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is explicit on what needs to be done.
READ ALSO:
2015 to be India's hottest year ever, says IMD
The G77 and China, which forms the biggest group in the ongoing Paris climate talks, on Wednesday strongly objected to attempts made by rich nations to dilute the Convention that call on developed countries to extend support to poorer nations.
It in its first formal statement, the group said, "The G77 and China is deeply concerned with the attempts to introduce economic conditions in the finance section currently under negotiation here in Paris".
Asked about the economic conditions, the chair on Thursday termed such a move by the rich nations as an attempt to escape from their responsibility as laid out in the Convention. She said, "These countries jumped out of the Kyoto protocol. They did not even ratify it...World should be asking these small group of countries (rich nations) what is their responsibility".
READ ALSO:
Delhi views on tech transfer, finance part of new draft
Though she was clearly referring to the US which initially signed but never ratified the protocol and also Canada which later opted out of the protocol, she chose not to call out the two.
Asked to name the countries, she said, "We don't name and shame them. But, they name us." Her remarks, on behalf of the entire 134 developing countries came just a day after the group flagged its concerns over the approach of rich nations towards finance.
She late on Wednesday evening said, "This approach is not consistent with the Convention, the mandate of the ADP and the sovereignty of Parties. Any attempt to replace the core obligation of developed countries to provide financial support to developing countries with a number of arbitrarily identified economic conditions is a violation of the rules-based multilateral process and threatens an outcome here in Paris".
The group on Wednesday expressed its concerns over the narrative which suggests that the world has changed since the UNFCCC was adopted in 1992 due to the dramatic economic development gains of some of the developing countries (China, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and UAE among others) and hence that it is time to expand the pool of so-called "donors" of climate "aid" and to narrow the list of those eligible to receive this "support" to only the "poorest of the poor".
"This narrative serves narrow national interests of developed countries and says little about reality. If the world has really changed so much, we ask why it is that after all these decades all our members remain developing countries with little or no voice in global decision-making processes and institutions", said the ambassador.
The G77 and China stressed that nothing under the UNFCCC can be achieved without the provision of means of implementation to enable developing countries to play their part to address climate change.
Mxakato-Diseko said that the full picture of financial arrangements for the enhanced implementation of the Convention kept on eluding the Group.
"We believe that it will help the process if all matters related to finance, whether it is under the Convention, the Kyoto Protocol and under the ADP (Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action) can be discussed in a comprehensive and coherent manner, regardless of where they will be reflected in the end, whether in the decision or the agreement", she said.
The group also emphasized that it is now time for all developed countries to convert their pledges to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) into contribution agreements, as well as scaling up commitments in the ADP process.
Under the Convention, developed countries are obliged to provide financial resources, including technology transfer and capacity building to all developing countries.
This is a legal obligation under the Convention. It is neither aid nor charity, nor is it the same as development assistance. Finance support from developed countries relates to the impacts of historical emissions, which will only get worse with time for developing countries.
"The (issue) of finance is critical ... It will make or break (the summit)", the group said. Articulating the united stand over the issue, which divides the developed and developing world, group chair ambassador Nozipho Mxakato-Diseko from South Africa said the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is explicit on what needs to be done.
READ ALSO:
2015 to be India's hottest year ever, says IMD
The G77 and China, which forms the biggest group in the ongoing Paris climate talks, on Wednesday strongly objected to attempts made by rich nations to dilute the Convention that call on developed countries to extend support to poorer nations.
It in its first formal statement, the group said, "The G77 and China is deeply concerned with the attempts to introduce economic conditions in the finance section currently under negotiation here in Paris".
Asked about the economic conditions, the chair on Thursday termed such a move by the rich nations as an attempt to escape from their responsibility as laid out in the Convention. She said, "These countries jumped out of the Kyoto protocol. They did not even ratify it...World should be asking these small group of countries (rich nations) what is their responsibility".
READ ALSO:
Delhi views on tech transfer, finance part of new draft
Though she was clearly referring to the US which initially signed but never ratified the protocol and also Canada which later opted out of the protocol, she chose not to call out the two.
Asked to name the countries, she said, "We don't name and shame them. But, they name us." Her remarks, on behalf of the entire 134 developing countries came just a day after the group flagged its concerns over the approach of rich nations towards finance.
She late on Wednesday evening said, "This approach is not consistent with the Convention, the mandate of the ADP and the sovereignty of Parties. Any attempt to replace the core obligation of developed countries to provide financial support to developing countries with a number of arbitrarily identified economic conditions is a violation of the rules-based multilateral process and threatens an outcome here in Paris".
The group on Wednesday expressed its concerns over the narrative which suggests that the world has changed since the UNFCCC was adopted in 1992 due to the dramatic economic development gains of some of the developing countries (China, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and UAE among others) and hence that it is time to expand the pool of so-called "donors" of climate "aid" and to narrow the list of those eligible to receive this "support" to only the "poorest of the poor".
"This narrative serves narrow national interests of developed countries and says little about reality. If the world has really changed so much, we ask why it is that after all these decades all our members remain developing countries with little or no voice in global decision-making processes and institutions", said the ambassador.
The G77 and China stressed that nothing under the UNFCCC can be achieved without the provision of means of implementation to enable developing countries to play their part to address climate change.
Mxakato-Diseko said that the full picture of financial arrangements for the enhanced implementation of the Convention kept on eluding the Group.
"We believe that it will help the process if all matters related to finance, whether it is under the Convention, the Kyoto Protocol and under the ADP (Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action) can be discussed in a comprehensive and coherent manner, regardless of where they will be reflected in the end, whether in the decision or the agreement", she said.
The group also emphasized that it is now time for all developed countries to convert their pledges to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) into contribution agreements, as well as scaling up commitments in the ADP process.
Under the Convention, developed countries are obliged to provide financial resources, including technology transfer and capacity building to all developing countries.
This is a legal obligation under the Convention. It is neither aid nor charity, nor is it the same as development assistance. Finance support from developed countries relates to the impacts of historical emissions, which will only get worse with time for developing countries.
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