G-20 Leaders Support Binding Accord To Address Climate Change at Paris Summit

摘要

Leaders from the Group of 20 Nov. 16 endorsed the efforts of international climate negotiators to seek a binding accord to cap global warming at 2 degrees Celsius by the end of the century. The communique-released at the conclusion of the Nov. 15-16 G-20 summit in Antalya, Turkey-said G-20 nations would seek an "ambitious agreement" at the 21st Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change summit in Paris, Nov. 30-Dec. 11. G-20 leaders are determined to adopt a "protocol, another legal instrument or an agreed outcome with legal force" that would be applicable to all parties, they said. The contributions of G-20 members could provide a boost to the global climate change negotiations, as they are collectively responsible for 85 percent of the world's overall carbon emissions. But the issue of defining what a "binding" agreement would be remains a point of contention that likely won't be ironed out until the Paris talks are under way (46 ER 3451, 11/13/15).