Is France ready for Paris Protocol in 2015?

French President's adviser for international negotiation on climate change and environment Madame Mariae-Helene Aubert made it very clear that France as the host of the UN climate conference in 2015 in Paris had already been preparing for mobilisation of all diplomatic and political efforts to deliver a balanced, ambitious, fair and equitable legally-binding agreement to help solve the global climate crisis collectively with participation of all parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
She welcomed us at her Presidential Palace office in Paris on October 03 and asked about the expectations of Bangladesh, in particular, and the 49 least developed countries (LDCs), in general, ahead of the Warsaw climate conference (COP 19) and the Paris COP 21. As this scribe posed a question as to whether the French presidency was ready to deliver a legally-binding, equitable, fair, balanced and robust Paris Protocol to rescue the planet from climate catastrophes, given the urgency pronounced by the new findings of the Scientists of Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released in Stockholm, known as AR5.
An ecologist by profession, Mariae-Helene has been on the forefront of green movement in Paris for over three decades. She knew her cup of tea and shared with us her candid reflections on the current impasse over climate negotiations, the prospect of Warsaw COP 19 in Poland in November, the 28-member EU position, ambition and difficulties, rocky pathways towards the Paris COP 21, Bangladesh-France bilateral ties and the EU-LDC role in cracking the hard nuts.
Recalling the role of France and the EU during the Durban climate conference in striking a deal and also commending the EU's reaching the 2020 emission reduction targets seven years earlier, this scribe asked her some very key questions regarding the paramount importance of further raising the carbon cut ambitions by the EU, scaling up climate finance including technology transfer, capacity building, supporting LDC Fund and operationalisation of Green Climate Fund, setting up an International Mechanism for Loss and Damage, and supporting formulation and implementation of the National Adaptation Plans for LDCs and non-LDCs.
Mariae-Helene took note of all my questions and said the 28-member EU including France was well ahead of the Kyoto second commitment target as they reached the pledge seven years earlier than 2020 and now were trying to raise the ambition. Given the economic meltdown, France and other EU countries are now providing resources for climate finance in developing countries. In fact, France asked all its ambassadors to reach out to developing countries with more climate finance, she pointed out adding that the GCF and LDCF were on the cards.
When Dr M Asaduzzaman urged her to utilise French diplomatic charm, she responded quite positively saying that no stone would be left unturned to strike a deal in Paris in 2015. Dr Ahsanuddin Ahmed raised the issue of equity and loss and damage. The French President's adviser pointed out some of the divergent views of different groups of parties, but gave assurance of her consideration in reaching a consensus.
Terming the over 90-minute interaction quite productive, she intended to continue this dialogue among friends in the run-up to Paris and beyond.
On October 4 at the French Ministry of Environment, Climate and Energy in Paris, we had a meeting with a French negotiation team comprising top officials from Foreign Ministry, Finance Ministry and Climate Change Ministry, where we discussed what could be achieved in the Warsaw COP 19 in November. Here we met my long-time friends Frederic Schafferer, Damien, Marie, Delphine and the rest of the team and called for announcing early mitigation pledges by the EU so that others could also join them in cutting back global greenhouse gases to limit the temperature rise to below two degrees, preferably 1.5 degrees as the IPCC is insisting.
We also called upon the French negotiation team to help support formulation and implementation of LDCs' national adaptation plans (NAPs) including Bangladesh National Adaptation Plan, as even after two years of the Durban decision no LDCs received a single dollar for preparing their NAPs. France and the EU were asked to support participation of LDCs and other developing countries at the upcoming First Annual Adaptation Forum to be held in Warsaw during the COP 19 to raise the profile of adaptation and showcase the best adaptation practices across the globe.
During the Paris meetings, we made it clear that an international mechanism for loss and damage must be inked at Warsaw with a new funding body for Loss and Damage so that it did not put much stress on the already under-stress GCF. Adaptation funding for developing countries, specifically for LDCs like Bangladesh, should be scaled up robustly and more than 50 per cent of GCF resources should be earmarked for adaptation, adaptation technology and capacity building.
As a climate negotiator since 1991, this scribe thought the detailed roadmap should be agreed upon at Warsaw in the first week of the negotiation without any further delay. The contour of elements of the upcoming legally-binding agreement should be reached at Warsaw in November. The narratives should be reached at the latest at Lima in 2014 so that the Paris Protocol is ready for signing even before the Paris COP 21. This scribe shared it with Madame Mariae-Helene and advised her to interact with different heads of state and government so that the task, the French Presidency is entrusted with, could be accomplished at ease, since climate negotiation had taken a new turn and twist and had a political dimension. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has convened a high-level meeting scheduled for early next year and the French should seize that opportunity to ensure political guidance to strike a deal. My French negotiation team friends during our meeting in Paris agreed to take unwilling horses to the water. Hope, the Warsaw climate conference would be successful in paving the way for Paris.
The writer is a lead climate negotiator of LDCs, member of UN Adaptation Committee and a member of UN Water Assessment, Futures and Solutions, Chairman of FEJB and APFEJ.                  [email protected]