Ecofin Council remains vague on aid for developing countries

摘要

Just as the environment ministers who, on 2 March, discussed in vain the very same subject for hours on end (see Europolitics Environment 763), the EU's finance ministers, meeting in Brussels on 10 March, failed to clearly define the financial structure that the EU will propose to its international partners in the climate change negotiations. At the very most, they recognise in their conclusions that rich countries, including the EU, must help developing countries financially to tackle climate change. They are counting on private more than public funds to achieve this as well as on market instruments and are making the aid contingent on the poorest countries drawing up 'clean' development strategies. But the finance ministers have been unable to give concrete figures or measures and sent the 'hot potato' back to the summit of EU heads of state and government, on 19 and 20 March.