Contents page 1 — The world is burning, the peak fight page 2 — “Massive breach of trust” On a page

read more clearly than Hoesung Lee, you would have the message difficult to put into words. “Every little bit of warming makes a difference,” said the Chairman of the IPCC, and spoke to the delegates in Katowice in order to. “Every year makes a difference. Each choice (which we make), makes a difference!”

Lee spoke at the opening of the High-Level segment of the climate summit – so it will be called in conference jargon is the Phase in which the Minister of the interior and Minister in the negotiations of their technical professionals. This part started on Tuesday. Strictly told Lee took the present is nothing New, but again, only the main findings of the IPCC, took the special report to the 1.5-degree target. In Paris, the 195 signatories had agreed to limit the temperature rise to a trademark “well below two degrees Celsius” and “to undertake efforts in the direction of 1.5 degrees”.

However, on this 1.5-degree report has ignited a few days ago, a dispute, the burden on the summit still. Lee’s speech was therefore mainly a political reminder to the delegates to not fumble it in Katowice.

Because this conference is important: to be negotiated on their ostensibly technical Details. However, if the non-votes, may be out of the Paris agreement on Climate change no meaningful practical climate policy. And how much time is of the essence, has just shown the 1.5-degree report. “We can’t afford to lose another year,” said Vanessa Pérez-Cirera, from the environmental organization WWF in Katowice. “If we have now no political will, then when? The world is burning.”

dispute is around 1.5 degrees

Nevertheless, the United States, Saudi Arabia, Russia and Kuwait, to welcome the Report “refused at the weekend in Katowice”. They insisted that the summit should take the report only “to the knowledge”. The Diplomat and to diplomats of other countries but not ready. They found the notion absurd, especially since the had ordered the signatory countries of the Treaty of Paris the report to the intergovernmental panel on climate change, and at the time of its publication, adopted by the United States. Also Saudi-Arabia.

“Welcome”, or “take note”? What sounds like splitting hairs, rained on your parade delegates on Wednesday, the mood. Now to haggle behind the Scenes on the wording of all sides could live with.

Saudi-argues Arabia, the report leave open questions. Negotiator Ayman Shasly calls at all in climate policy, due diligence should be clear that the industry would have to bear countries the largest part of the costs of climate protection – the oil country, Saudi Arabia, in spite of his wealth to the climate summit, as a developing country, and it would burn his Oil for as long as possible.

The U.S. government under President Donald Trump, by contrast, simply wants to avoid any political recognition of climate scientific findings. Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, a climate researcher at the Catholic University of Louvain and a member of the intergovernmental panel on climate change, commented with quiet derision, “even the super negotiating powers with the climate,” he said.

dispute ambition

The dispute to the 1.5 degrees is symptomatic of Katowice. How far the world is from the in Paris, the agreed target was shown on Tuesday to the Carbon Action Tracker, a consortium of scientific institutes. The researchers had calculated that Even if all countries kept their Parisian promise, would heat the world more likely to have three instead of 1.5 degrees Celsius. The climate targets of Germany and the EU have tended to lead to three degrees plus. Russia, Saudi Arabia, and the United States to more than four degrees.

More ambition would be in summit jargon “Ambition” – is therefore urgently needed. However, three days before the end of the conference, is not felt in Katowice of “Ambition” a lot. Even the European Union, one for Paris, for a coalition of the “highly ambitious” countries, to avoid the term.

Dear energy Commissioner, Miguel Arias Cañete, talks about the rules to the Paris agreement. Germany, after all, has promised to the developing countries, more money and more support. “Money helps”, said Vanessa Pérez-Cirera from the WWF. “But without more Ambition, the rule remains the book to Paris without sense.”