The negotiations this past week seemed to lack a sense of urgency. The divergent viewpoints over the Article 9 review of the Kyoto Protocol are mired in conflict, which threaten to block progress on this all important agenda item. ECO wants to remind Parties of the fundamental objectives and asks them to put aside these disagreements.
In Montreal it was agreed, in the context of the Article 3.9 review, that the Kyoto commitment periods should be contiguous, i.e. there shall be no gap. This is critical to the success of our efforts to prevent dangerous climate change. As a consequence of the simultaneous imperative to broaden and deepen action in reducing emissions, the Article 9 review is essential. This review must be completed in time for ratification of the amended Kyoto Protocol so that there is no gap between commitment periods. To achieve this goal, the resulting amendments from both reviews to the Protocol need be negotiated and agreed upon no later than 2008.
ECO has noted before that the Article 9 and Article 3.9 reviews are complementary and need to be mutually informative. In order to achieve this, COP/MOP3 in 2007 would have to agree a set of decisions that relate the Article 3.9 review process to outcomes of the Article 9 review, and in effect mandate the terms of negotiations and a timetable for these to be completed by 2008. A later start to the negotiations would render the objective of contiguous commitment periods meaningless.
For a successful mandate negotiation in 2007, the issues beyond those covered by the Article 3.9 review need to be developed and scoped out. So far at COP/MOP2 insufficient preparatory work has been done on the Article 9 review to allow for a credible assessment, when compared against the ultimate objective of the Convention. In order to prepare for the adoption of a mandate at COP/MOP3 that initiates full negotiations on the next stage of Kyoto, COP/MOP2 needs to agree to start the Article 9 review now and to reach concrete conclusions at COP/MOP3 that can feed into the mandate decision.
A basic starting point must be that this review builds on the architecture of the Kyoto Protocol and its enabling Marrakech Accords, specifically the legally binding Quantified Emissions Limitation Reduction Objectives structure for Annex I Parties and the trading mechanism. Furthermore, the review must be aimed at identifying the necessary range of amendments, including enhancements and structural changes, to the Kyoto Protocol and Marrakech Accords. These must be fully consistent with the principles of common but differentiated responsibilities and equity that underpin the UNFCCC. And of course inputs into the Article 9 review must be informed by the work of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Kyoto Protocol.
Accordingly, decisions on Article 9 here at COP/MOP2 should be aimed at supporting the adoption of a mandate at COP/MOP3, fully taking into account the substantive issues discussed above. Timetables should not extend beyond 2007. This is a challenging task but the least the world can do in face of the extreme and urgent nature of the dangers it is threatened with.
For those who have most to lose from climate change, not least of all many in the developing world, there are two compelling reasons to support a decision at this meeting on the Article 9 review that is strong but time-limited and consequently a full Mandate at COP/MOP3. Firstly, only by that does the world stand a chance to prevent dangerous climate change. Secondly, only the increased financial flows and technology transfer driven by deeper targets for Annex I countries and enhanced mechanisms can serve the multi-billion dollar needs of developing countries on adaptation as well as clean energy investments. These financial flows will never materialise without such a clear mandate decision.
