The White House has announced that US President Barack Obama will attend the forthcoming UN climate change conference in Copenhagen to work with the international community for a "comprehensive and operational" Copenhagen accord.
In the context of an overall deal in Copenhagen that includes robust mitigation contributions from China and the other emerging economies, the President, said the White House is prepared to put on the table a US emissions reduction target in the range of 17% below 2005 levels in 2020 and ultimately in line with final US energy and climate legislation.
In light of Obama’s goal to reduce emissions 83% by 2050, the expected pathway set forth in this pending legislation would entail a 30% reduction below 2005 levels in 2025 and a 42% reduction below 2005 in 2030, said the White House, adding that Obama is working closely with Congress to pass energy and climate legislation as soon as possible..
The countries of the world, led by the major economies, have been urged by the White House to “do what it takes to produce a strong, operational agreement that will both launch us on a concerted effort to combat climate change and serve as a stepping stone to a legally binding treaty”.
However, it poses the question as to whether Obama’s presence and US climate targets will bring some hope to the Copenhagen conference, which reportedly will see the end of the Kyoto protocol, the only existing globally agreed climate treaty.
Bilateral and multilateral climate agreements, rather than a post-Kyoto deal have been reported to be highly possible as an outcome of the Copenhagen conference. This projection came as leading emitters, especially China and US, reject any commitment to capping emissions, regarded as the critical factor in discouraging and impeding the process for a new global climate agreement.
The two countries have been strongly urged to make legally binding targets instead of taking advantage of each other’s inaction, to take the lead in making concerted efforts to fight the climate crisis.
