Russia Agenda fight delays UN climate talks for two days, earns Moscow a fossil award
4 June 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 4, 2013
Bonn, Germany
Contact:
Ria Voorhaar
rvoorhaar@climatenetwork.org
+49 157 3173 5568
Today's Fossil is awarded to Russia for blocking the start of the SBI through trying to alter the agenda. In Doha, Parties made progress on improving the environmental integrity of the Kyoto Protocol by getting rid of some of the hot air in the system. Yet, now Russia – who is not even a Party to the second commitment period of the Protocol – is all bent out of shape about how the decision was taken. Of course, having matters being formally adopted and adhering to the rules of procedure are very important elements in this process, however blocking the work of the SBI for two days is not the way to have this matter is resolved. There has been an item on the COP agenda dealing with proposals regarding the rules of procedure for the past two years. The SBI agenda is full of pressing issues that could also yield real emission reductions – like reforming JI and the CDM to ensure additionality or reviewing the adequacy of the long-term goal. So Russia why don’t you use that super power of yours to get the SBI back on track?!
About CAN: The Climate Action Network (CAN) is a worldwide network of over 850 Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) working to promote government and individual action to limit human0induced climate change to ecologically sustainable levels. www.climatenetwork.org
About the fossils: The Fossil of the Day awards were first presented at the climate talks in 1999, in Bonn, initiated by the German NGO Forum. During United Nations climate change negotiations (www.unfccc.int), members of the Climate Action Network (CAN), vote for countries judged to have done their 'best' to block progress in the negotiations in the last days of talks.
###