Conference of Parties 15, Day 3

Day 3 has proven to be just as intense as day 2. Though the Danish text is still a topic of conversation it has been replaced by the drama of this morning, which has prompted great tension.

This morning in the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action (AWG-LCA) plenary session, Tuvalu, on behalf of the Association of Small Island States (AOSIS), put forth a resolution calling for a legally-binding post-2012 treaty. Most states briefly commented in support of a legally-binding treaty, including the United States. Tuvalu further requested the creation of a contact group to handle the development of such a treaty, emphasizing transparency within the negotiations.

China was the first to respond in explicit opposition to Tuvalu's resolution. China's delegate became pretty outraged and said that the Kyoto Protocol and all of its provisions/working groups/etc were working fine and there was no need to open the way to a new treaty. (Which may or may not have been Tuvalu's intention. They seemed more concerned about the transparency of negotiations and the creation of a legally-binding treaty which may include Kyoto or not). China then went on a tangent about how the COP15 logo was biased and inappropriate. (They were upset that the logo only said COP15 and not CMP5 as well. COP Meeting of the Parties acknowledges the second track of the negotiations, AWG-KP, on the Kyoto Protocol. The United States cannot contribute to MOP as it has never ratified the Protocol. All other countries were aghast; the logo had been created a year ago and this was the first mention of dissatisfaction). India, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela joined China in opposition of AOSIS and tried to brush off Tuvalu's resolution. Tuvalu and other developing nations were put off by this treatment. Tuvalu called for the COP to be suspended. (Quite an unusual occurrence at COP).

Later intelligence revealed that China's anger was partially founded in previous events of the day. Apparently China's Minister was denied access to the Conference three times before having his badge taken away. This MAJOR screw up added to the drama and the excitement of the day. Yvo de Boer had not been aware of the situation and expressed his deep and sincere apologies.

It was incredible to be sitting in the plenary session and to see all of this happen first hand. Reading something on paper (or in a blog) is much different from hearing the tone of a delegate's voice, seeing the anger in his or her face, see the reactions of the room, etc.

COP resumed discussions at 3 with no major news so far. Keeping up with all of the developments in two parallel tracks has been very difficult. Attending CAN meetings and participating in policy analysis has helped a lot. I am trying to get the most out of my experience by attending plenaries, meetings, and side events. My approach for tomorrow will be to spend as much time as possible in plenary trying to keep up with new developments. Though I feel a little confused and overwhelmed at times, being in the middle of the UN negotiations is really thrilling. I could definitely see myself doing this as a future career, hopefully in a more powerful capacity. Though it is similar to my experiences in Congress or Parliament, this feels like the major leagues.