Climate negotiators look to boost talks

BONN, Germany — Diplomats began wrapping up negotiations on advancing the Paris climate accord Tuesday at a global conference in Germany, setting the stage for political leaders to fly in and provide a final shot of momentum.

The talks now in their second week are largely technical in nature. But the Trump administration’s threat to pull the U.S. out of the agreement and extreme weather events in many parts of the world have created pressure for other governments at the meeting to strongly affirm their support for the 2015 Paris accord.

Much of the limelight today is expected to fall on Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, which is co-hosting the U.N. talks in Bonn with Fiji. Environmental campaigners want Germany to show its commitment to curbing global warming by announcing a deadline for phasing out the use of coal, a major greenhouse gas.

President Hilda Heine of the Marshall Islands, whose country risks being swallowed by the Pacific Ocean if global warming causes sea levels to keep rising, said a declaration that Germany will end its use of coal “would be a signal of hope for my country and for every vulnerable country around the world.”