Barack Obama conceded on Sunday that next month’s Copenhagen summit would not produce a legally binding agreement to tackle global warming, in a move that prompted groans of disappointment from environmental groups.Stating “we should not make the perfect the enemy of the good,” Mr Obama made official what observers had anticipated for months.
The decision to downgrade ambitions for Copenhagen occured at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation in Singapore where it was supported by all 21 participants, including China.
There is some hope for a second round. The first non-legally-binding agreement could be replaced by a legally-binding one in Mexico in 2010. The decision to wait until then seems to have come from fear of failure, according to the Financial Times report.
Leaders would aim in Copenhagen to produce what Mr Rasmussen described as a “politically binding” agreement that would cover mitigation, adaption, finance and technology. US officials said Mr Obama saw Mr Rasmussen’s approach as more palatable than taking the risk of aiming for a treaty in Copenhagen and failing.
