In many ways, Friday has resulted in a political deadlock. The fact that the US, EU, and China have not brought anything new to the table today, has in many ways resulted in a lack of political will to come up with an ambitous, binding agreement. Things are being extended, as the United Nations facilitator has asked leaders to stay the night. Negotiations will continue into the weekend, as a result. In response to this, Obama has set up a second meeting with the Chinese delegation to attempt tp break the deadlock. It seems so obvious to me that Obama wants these nogotiations to work, but unfortunetly he has been forced to work with targets set by Congress. I truly believe that he is doing his best.
The three leaders--the US, EU, and China-- are all saying, "we will up our offer if you do so first." They are all waiting on one of the others to step up and take the lead. If one does so, I think that the others will follow, and an ambitous deal will be reached. I think that Obama would like to take on this role, but again, he is incapacitated by the American political system that is behind him. WE NEED A LEADER. The outcome of these negotiations hinge on someone taking on a leadership role. I don't think that America can do this, given our politics. Who will step up?
Zach,
ReplyDeleteSince you've been in Denmark, has any particular group or individual demonstrated the type of leadership that we need? It doesn't seem like it's going to come from our political leaders, so perhaps it will appear from a person/group outside that arena.
Jane
Jane,
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to say, I think, and it depends on who you ask. I read an article about Australia's Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, and some say that he was one developed nation leader who worked tirelessly for a deal. Like Obama, he was representing a country that has some resistance at home, so he didn’t have a lot of big steps to bring to the table. He was very vocal in working for a deal, however, and he was said to be an excellent diplomat. His critics, of course, say that he was just kissing-butt on the international stage, because some think that he would like to be the head of the UN some day.
Also, I think that some would say that Obama did a lot to bring China and India into a deal. Again, he had little to offer in terms of specific emission-reduction targets because Congress has yet to pass any climate legislation. But he worked hard while he was here meeting with China’s leaders in closed meetings, trying to bring them into the deal. I don’t think that he stood out, however, because his country and its domestic politics didn’t allow him to bring a lot to the table.
Of course, the Danes have taken a leadership role in all of this, even if only by default. The woman who facilitated the negotiations and meetings was Connie Hedegaard, the Danish Minister of the Environment. She was wonderful, and it was very obvious that she wanted to lead the way—and I think that she did, to the best of her ability. The entire of Country of Denmark has been preparing for this conference for quite sometime, and a lot of that was shaping themselves up to look as “green” as possible as to set a good example for the rest of the world. They really wanted to look good on the international level. The problem, of course, is that they are a very small country of only 5 million people. It’s hard for such a small nation to be a truly effective leader. And really, I think that it’s hard for anyone to completely lead the way in negotiations like this, as the politics of getting 192 countries to agree on one document is incredibly challenging. That being said, everyone would gladly accept some strong American or Chinese leadership on this issue, and I’m sure the world would follow.