Isra-Mart srl:Developing countries hint at Cancun compromise

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A number of developing countries appeared to soften their line at the Cancun climate summit yesterday, fuelling optimism that a compromise agreement could be delivered on the final day of the fortnight-long talks.

In what could represent a major breakthrough, Indian environment minister Jairam Ramesh told the CNN-IBN news television channel that there were circumstances under which the country would submit to "binding" emissions targets.

"All countries must make binding commitments in appropriate legal form," he said. "This does not mean that India is for a legally binding commitment at this stage. That's our position. There are changing realities that we have to understand. Increasingly, more and more developing countries are asking questions of India, China and the United States, the three big countries saying they will not accept an international legally-binding agreement."

He added that India had adopted a "nuanced" position whereby the country would endeavour to keep the negotiations going and ensure it will "not be painted as the bad guy".

The comments appear to represent a major shift from the Indian negotiating team, which has previously suggested it would only submit to voluntary emissions targets.

Significantly, Ramesh's comments echo those of China's negotiating team, which earlier this week signalled for the first time it could agree to some form of binding emissions targets.

There were also encouraging indications from Venezuela's climate envoy Claudia Salerno, who was quoted by Bloomberg as saying the talks were "finding convergence".

Venezuela had been among a group of six countries that blocked the formal adoption of the Copenhagen Accord at last year's summit and there had been fears that left-leaning Latin American countries could once again unite to oppose any agreement, which under UN rules requires unanimous support.

"The difficulties are the same as last year, but the disposition of the talks is much better," Salerno told the news agency. "No one plans to leave that room until we've understood each other."

However, fears remain that Bolivia could oppose any deal reached in Cancun after president Evo Morales gave an impassioned defence of the country's calls for industrialised nations to sign up to far more ambitious emission reduction targets.

He said that deaths resulting from climate change were effectively "genocide" caused by capitalism and reiterated his view that the entire world order would have to change to cut emissions.

"There are two ways: either capitalism dies or Mother Earth dies," he told the summit, adding the delegates must "live up to the hopes of the millions of families who are the victims of global warming".

There were also reports this morning of a tense meeting late last night where Bolivia and Saudi Arabia protested at the alleged development of secret negotiating texts.