America: No Chinese Transparency, No Eco-Aid

As the marathon United Nations Climate Conference comes to a close, the United States emphasizes that Chinese transparency is crucial to its Eco-Aid proposal.

In Copenhagen, the American representatives did basically three things: walk off the plane, hold press conferences and pick on China.

A few hours after she arrived in Copenhagen yesterday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced that the United States, along with other developed nations, would provide $100 billion to developing nations by 2020; however, unless the final treaty includes a commitment to transparency, the U.S. is unlikely to participate.

Clinton also pointed a finger at China, saying, “It would be hard to imagine, speaking for the United States, that there could be the level of financial commitment that I have just announced in the absence of transparency from the second biggest emitter — and now I guess the first biggest emitter, and now nearly, if not already, the second biggest economy.”

Then there is the MRV, which is diplomatic shorthand for ensuring that steps taken by countries are measurable, reportable and verifiable. The fact that the Americans constantly bring up this issue reflects a “If you’re not doing something I like, I can and will make you pay” type of logic, characteristic of the American national style. Zou Ji, former Chinese climate negotiator and deputy dean of the School of Environment at the People’s University of China, said that the MRV issue, compared to things like a concrete emission reduction goal, technology and financial aid, really isn’t that important.

For the time being, both government representatives and NGOs are expressing growing expectations toward President Obama’s arrival on the 18th, hoping that he may be able to break the impasse.

The director of the Royal Society for Protection of Nature in Bhutan told the Chinese Business Network (CBN) reporter that future chances of establishing concrete agreements will be scarce if Copenhagen doesn’t work out right and it’s simply too risky to expect so much from Obama.

At 10:00 p.m. on the 16th, just as our CBN reporter was about to leave the Bella Center, a general unmoderated caucus that was originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. finally began. Delegates from several smaller developing nations motioned for an early leave (They were terribly sleepy.), while larger nations continued negotiations. As a matter of fact, around 5:00 p.m., representatives from several African countries had already left the convention center. They told our reporter that their leaving wouldn’t make that much of a difference.

During the Copenhagen conference, attended by 192 nations that signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change treaty, final negotiation and decision responsibilities were transferred to only a few signatories in the last 48 hours.

The American delegation obtained greater decision-making rights as Secretary Clinton joined the team, bringing some hope that a concrete pact may eventually be agreed upon. The United States made it clear, however, that major developing countries must abide by the MRV principles if developed countries like America were to provide financial and technical support.

Secretary Clinton stressed that funding from developed nations must go to the least developed nations first and that “in the absence of a new agreement that binds everyone to their relative commitments and responsibilities, where the developed countries take on these obligations and where the developing countries work on their own mitigation and adaptation measures, with a transparency mechanism, there will not be the kind of concerted, global action that we so desperately need.”

The $100 billion proposal corresponds with the long-term fundraising goals of the European Union. This is the first time that America has promised such long-term eco-funding for developing nations.

Despite the groundbreaking nature of the proposal, Secretary Clinton did not clarify what portion of the $100 billion would come from the government, what portion would come from public funds and what portion would come from the carbon credit exchange market.

Carter Roberts, president and CEO of the World Wildlife Fund, told our CBN reporter that the $100 billion proposal from Secretary Clinton gave the conference, which had reached somewhat of a stalemate by now, a much needed breath of fresh air. Whether or not the proposal becomes reality, however, depends largely upon whether China and the U.S. can reach an agreement on the definition of transparency and whether President Obama can place climate change legislation at the top of his agenda for the new year.

Mr. Zou Ji commented, “Negotiations are supposed to be like this: no success until the very last minute. This time it is difficult, however, because the main problem of developed nations lies with the U.S., but Congress has not given their delegation any specific rights. Even if the American representatives promise anything, it remains uncertain as to whether the U.S. government will actually fulfill the promise.

During the Chinese press conference on the evening of the 16th, Su Wei, the vice-director of the Chinese delegation and the director general for Climate Change of the National Development and Reform Commission, said that in regards to the MRV requirements, transparency could be achieved by means of national communication.

As our CBN reporter concluded this article, leaders from several nations had begun to speak during the final stage of the Copenhagen conference, the Climate Summit. 48 world leaders were scheduled to speak on the 17th. Disappointingly, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who belongs to the Umbrella Group countries, and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who has always been enthusiastic about reducing carbon emissions, both failed to provide any concrete measures in their speeches.

“It has become a political choice, whether we choose a sketchy, loose, low-quality treaty or not,” said Mr. Zou Ji, who also mentioned that the Chinese government does wish to reach an agreement of some sort.

It is highly likely that this conference will continue late into the night of the 18th. A United Nations staff member informed our CBN reporter that they had been told not to leave the Bella Center and were needed to work late into the night.