In Bonn, another negotiating session concluded for the preparation of the text of the Paris Agreement, which is set to replace the Kyoto Protocol in 2020. It should be noted that the simplification of the nearly 100-page document, which represents the draft of the future agreement, has made very little progress. Several more negotiating meetings of the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) and ministerial meetings are planned before the Conference in Paris, so that by December a nearly final text will be available. The Bonn negotiations covered several topics simultaneously: long-term goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the new agreement, adaptation to the impacts of climate change, finance, reporting, and transparency – and mainly focused on reducing the text, which still contains numerous options supported by various groups of countries.
Much time was spent on negotiations regarding the organization of the further work process: the parties discussed which issues must be resolved before Paris, what needs to be included in the agreement itself, and what should be part of political declarations and technical decisions of the Conference of Parties. A lot more attention was given to the actions of countries before 2020. It became clear in Bonn that if developed countries do not step up their efforts for the period before 2020 – particularly in reducing emissions and filling the Green Climate Fund – developing countries will not be able to take truly decisive actions under the Paris Agreement. Representatives of developed countries recognize this, and there is hope for a breakthrough in Paris at least regarding the increase of financial resources. National commitments after 2020. Countries continue to actively submit their so-called “national contributions” to the new agreement for the period 2020-2030. From the Eastern Europe, Caucasus, and Central Asia (EECCA) region, only Russia has submitted its commitments so far, while the remaining countries in the region are in the active preparation phase to meet the deadline – October 1, 2015. “A critically important point in preparing national contributions for countries in the EECCA region, which are particularly vulnerable to climate change, is the necessity to specify goals and adaptation needs,” notes Maria Storchilo, an expert on climate change at the National Ecological Center of Ukraine. “Without this data, the chances of obtaining assistance for adaptation actions will be minimal.” The second period of the Kyoto Protocol. The rules for the implementation of the second period of the Kyoto Protocol (2012-2020) have been agreed upon for countries that participated in the first period of the Kyoto Protocol and undertook commitments in the second period. For the other countries (Belarus, Kazakhstan, Japan, Russia, New Zealand), discussions on the rules will continue in winter in Paris, as it was once again not possible to reach an agreement on a number of issues in Bonn.
