Rich to carry finance burden of 'new Kyoto'
Rich countries will be asked to pay to help poorer countries adapt to the effects of global warming, as representatives from most of the world's governments gather in Kenya today to discuss climate change.
Adaptation to climate change will be the top item on the agenda for the two-week meeting about the Kyoto protocol, held by the United Nations in Nairobi. Countries affected by the rises in sea levels, droughts, floods and storms expected to result from climate change will face huge bills in trying to limit such damage. Millions of people could also be displaced from their homes.
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The countries hardest hit will be the poorest, such as low-lying Bangladesh, where rising sea levels could put as many as 15m people at risk of flooding. Rich countries at the UN meeting are expected to announce plans for assistance to the developing world.
Andrew Pendleton, of the charity Christian Aid, said: "It's poor people, who have done virtually nothing to contribute to this problem, who will be hardest hit. Surely the British government and other leading polluters can now see they have a moral, as well financial, duty to combat climate change."
Another key focus for the meeting will be the future of the Kyoto protocol after 2012, when the current provisions expire. Under the treaty, rich countries must reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 5 per cent compared with 1990 levels. The US and Australia have rejected this requirement and have refused to discuss extending the treaty beyond 2012.
But the stance of the US and Australian governments has softened markedly in the past year. Canberra has talked of the necessity for Australia to be part of a "new Kyoto" after 2012. The US last year dismissed talks of a framework beyond 2012 as "premature" and said its focus was on the short term. This year, however, it has expressed a willingness to discuss "long-term" issues.
Paula Dobriansky, US undersecretary of state for democracy and global affairs, told the Financial Times: "What we have supported is a range of actions which address climate change in the near, medium and long term, including bilateral and regional [agreements] and the commitments we have under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change [parent treaty to the Kyoto protocol]. and I would add that these initiatives entail public-private partnerships."
The change in stance by the US may allow greater progress than had been expected to be made at this year's talks on a post-2012 settlement.
“富国应向穷国提供经援”
全球大多数国家的代表今日将齐聚肯尼亚首都内罗毕，讨论全球气候变化问题。会议将要求富裕国家向穷国提供资金援助，帮助其适应全球变暖带来的影响。
此次关于《京都议定书》(Kyoto protocol)的会议由联合国(United Nations)组织召开。如何适应全球气候变化将是为期两周会议的首要议题。
全球气候变暖将导致海平面上升、干旱、洪水和暴风雪等问题，受影响国家需要支付巨额费用，以降低此类灾害带来的影响。数以百万计的人还可能流离失所。
受打击最为严重的将是最为贫穷的国家。例如在地势较低的孟加拉国，海平面的不断上升将使多达1500万人面临洪水威胁。
