Climate funds exceed $10b at Lima talks

LIMA, Dec 10 (AFP): Rich countries have pledged more than US$10 billion in climate aid for poor economies, a psychological threshold at UN global warming talks in Lima, according to a tally compiled by the news agency Tuesday.

Finance is a touchy issue at the negotiations, where developing countries -- led by China -- want wealthy economies to spell out their promised support as a sign of good faith in negotiations to forge a global climate pact by December 2015l.

The $10-billion level was exceeded when Australia promised Aus$200 million ($166 million, 134 million euros) and Belgium 51.6 million euros at a ministerial meeting in the Peruvian capital. The pledges are for the brand-new Green Climate Fund (GCF), the main vehicle for channelling financial aid to poor nations.

Rich countries undertook in 2009 to muster at least $100 billion per year, from all sources, from 2020.

The money will be used to help shore up the defenses of climate-vulnerable countries and help them reduce their carbon emissions.

"These contributions should build trust in the negotiations and propel action to a global agreement," said Athena Ballesteros of the World Resources Institute (WRI), a US think tank.