MEXICO NEGOTIATES FUTURE OF ZELAYA
Mexico is trying to negotiate a way out of the situation of deposed Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, after he expressed his desire to leave his refuge in the Brazilian Embassy in Tegucigalpa. He has rejected the possibility of applying for political asylum.
Zelaya said that the de facto government is creating obstacles in the process of issuing a travel document that would enable him to leave the country. Honduran media has been speculating about the possibility that Zelaya may leave Honduras over the next few days.
El Pais (Spanish)
http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Mexico/negocia/Honduras/acoger/refugiado/Zelaya/elpepuint/20091210elpepuint_7/Tes
La Prensa (Honduras, Spanish)
http://www.laprensahn.com/Apertura/Ediciones/2009/12/10/Noticias/Abortan-salida-de-Zelaya-a-la-capital-mexicana
ARGENTINA AND VENEZUELA REINFORCE THEIR ALLIANCE
The Argentinean President Cristina Fernández and her Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez have signed more than 15 agreements in Buenos Aires, reinforcing their economic relations.
They have agreed to share a communications satellite as well as using a single currency for bilateral trade.
Other agreements are related to health, industry, tourism and infrastructure.
El Pais (Spanish)
http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Argentina/Venezuela/reafirman/relaciones/bilaterales/elpepuintlat/20091210elpepuint_5/Tes
CLIMATE CHANGE
BOLIVIA SAYS NO TO CARBON TRADING
The Bolivian delegation to the UN Climate Change Summit has expressed its disagreement with the proposal to create a carbon market as it believes that this is not the way to save the planet from global warming.
The Bolivian Ambassador at the UN, Pablo Solón, and the Chief Climate Change, Angelica Navarro, said in Copenhagen that the world needs to “free mother earth from slavery”. Solón compared the way the planet is being treated with the way slaves were exploited as working tools centuries ago. “The earth also has rights”, said Solón.
He said that the developed world had the duty to invest more in helping the developing nations to mitigate and to adapt to climate change. If the developed nations were able to find trillions of dollars to save Wall Street, why not do the same for the environment? he asked.
Solón insisted that the US$1 billion promised to the developing world was not enough.
LAB in Copenhagen
BRAZIL READY FOR AGREEMENT
Brazil says that its offer to reduce its emissions of greenhouse gases is on the table at COP15, clear, ambitious and ready to be signed.
Brazil’s chief negotiator, Luis Figuereido, said that “we want a strong, inclusive process based on the Bali road map”.
He dismissed the row among developing countries over whether or not it was necessary to reach a legally-binding treaty in Copenhagen. Small and vulnerable nations like Tuvalu have demanded a stronger agreement than the Kyoto Protocol, but China is opposed to this.
Figuereido said that in a group as big as the G77 there were bound to be different interests, as its members range from small countries, who are more likely to suffer severely from the consequences of climate change, to oil-producing countries. He believes that what matters is a common position when they get to the negotiating table with industrialised nations.
LAB in Copenhagen
COLOMBIA EXPECTS “AMBITIOUS TARGETS” IN COP15
Colombia will attend the UN Summit on Climate Change expecting an ambitious agreement to reduce global warming.
Colombian Environment Minister, Carlos Costa, said that his country is committed to reducing its emissions of CO2, despite the fact that Colombia contributes with only 0.37% of global greenhouse gases.
Costa said that his country will demand a commitment from the industrialised countries to help developing nations to mitigate the effects of global warming, because they are the “biggest emitters” of greenhouse gases. Colombia hopes delegates will sign at least a political agreement to be implemented before next year’s summit in Mexico.
Colombian Ministry of Environment (Spanish)
http://www.minambiente.gov.co/contenido/contenido.aspx?conID=4536&catID=974
PANAMA IN COP15: THE PLANET IS VULNERABLE
The representatives of Panama at the UN Climate Change Summit will highlight the effects that climate change will have on the social, economic and environmental life of the planet.
The Head of the Climate Change at Panama’s Environmental National Authority, Leslie Marin, said that the industrialised countries should finance the increasing costs of natural disasters caused by climate change in developing countries.
Marin said that Panama, together with the other members of the Central American Commission for Environment and Development, would demand that developed countries reduce their emissions of greenhouse gases by 45% by the year 2020 and 95% by 2050, compared with 1990 levels. Panama will also demand the creation of a regional centre for mitigation and adaptation as well as financial support for the REDD initiative for the protection of forests.
Panama National Environmental Authority (Spanish)
http://www.anam.gob.pa/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=383&Itemid=50?=en&limitstart=1