Danish PM's stitch-up on Copenhagen unravels in Beijing

Gland, Switzerland - WWF has welcomed the very strong signal from leading emerging economies that the Copenhagen climate change conference is far too important to be stitched up in the usual way by the usual suspects in the developed world.

At a meeting in Beijing Saturday, representatives of Brazil, South Africa, India and China (the BASIC countries) indicated they intend to reject a draft Danish “political agreement” at the Copenhagen climate conference which is regarded as the developed world’s preferred outcome for the conference. The Danish Prime Minister, who has spent the last month circulating the world to talk down prospects of a strong, legally binding deal in Copenhagen, is currently in Trinidad and Tobago for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

“We are not surprised the emerging economies have laid down this challenge for the developed world,” said said Kim Carstensen, leader of WWF’s Global Climate Initiative. “Quite frankly the Danish proposal is incredibly weak and the developing world aren’t gullible."

Carstensen said that the stance of the BASIC countries, dissension by African countries at the recent Barcelona negotiations session and calls from small island states and nations vulnerable to climate change impacts showed a growing rebellion against the feeble commitments on emissions cuts and climate financing from the developed world.

“Those who will suffer the most from climate change impacts are sending an ever stronger and clearer message to those who have done the most to cause them,” Carstensen said. “We need clear commitments, we need a legally binding agreement, and not just nice words about a political will that’s not there.

“The developed world needs to respond to the science with much deeper emissions cuts, much more new money on the table and much more willingness to share the technologies for low carbon development.