MADRID (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th December, 2019) The 25th UN Climate Change Conference (COP25) in Madrid, which was to end on Friday, will be extended as the parties have not reached a final agreement so far, Andres Landerretche, the coordinator of the presidency of the COP25, told reporters.
"We will work to reach an agreement, no matter how long it could take. It may take a night, morning hours. But there is progress in consultations, we are optimistic. We will not leave IFEMA [the exhibition center where the conference is held] without a good result," Landerretche said.
According to the coordinator, the parties are negotiating on a mechanism for implementing Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, which outlines rules for a new carbon trade system and remains the major stumbling block for the deal to become fully operational.
He stated that the discussion also focused on financing a number of countries to help them address climate change issues, adding that some countries had already asked for increased funding. As of now, the conference is to decide who will provide assistance.
In addition, Landerretche stated that there was a chance to settle disputes over Article 6. However, this would rather be a "general agreement," while technical issues will be addressed in the future.
The Paris Agreement, which was signed in 2015, aims to bring all nations together under the common cause of combating climate change. Its most well-known premise is to try to keep the rise of global temperatures below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels and to ideally pursue an even lower limit of 1.5 degrees Celsius. The treaty has no compliance mechanism.
