Horst Freitag, ambassador-designate, said COP17 would be one of the major watersheds in the long series of international conferences at which the world has been trying to negotiate a way to reduce global warming to levels that will not irreparably damage the planet.
Freitag, who recently arrived in South Africa, noted that although last year's COP16 conference in Cancun, Mexico, had achieved much, it had not faced the immense challenge of Durban - saving the Kyoto Protocol, the only existing international rules-based and legally binding climate agreement, which is due to expire at the end of next year.
The protocol binds developed countries to specific cuts in emissions of greenhouse gases.
“It takes responsibility, tremendous negotiation skills and a balanced approach to turn COP17 into a success," said Freitag.
“Being an important global player as well as one of the major emitters, South Africa sends out a strong signal, through its own policy decisions, that it stands ready to contribute its fair share towards the effective mitigation of climate change." Read the full report here.
Source: by Peter Fabricius, (Foreign Editor), IOL, Daily News.
