U.N. climate summit divided

Rich nations providing aid to vulnerable ones sticking point

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt — With an end-of-the-week deadline rushing at them faster than agreements are coming out of them, negotiators at the U.N. climate summit were in a difficult spot Wednesday.

Talks in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-sheikh got off to a plodding start and are behind the pace of previous meetings as government ministers returned to Egypt to take over negotiations with three days left before the scheduled close Friday.

“I think we still have a long way to go. But I remain hopeful that we can come to good conclusions,” the European Union’s top climate official, Frans Timmermans, told The Associated Press.

Demands for rich nations to provide additional aid for vulnerable countries suffering devastating impacts from climate change have become a major point of division at the two-week meeting.

Developed countries such as the United States have long resisted the idea of “loss and damage” for fear of being held financially liable for the carbon dioxide they’ve pumped into the atmosphere for decades.

But there has been a softening of positions among some rich nations that now acknowledge some form of payment will be needed, just not what.

“Countries that are particularly affected, who themselves bear no blame for the CO2 emissions of industrial nations such as Germany, rightly expect protection against loss and damage from climate change,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said. She later conceded that an agreement on the issue might not be possible in Egypt, however.

Timmermans, who is the EU’S executive vice-president, echoed that view.

“We’re all willing to find some substantial steps forward, but we’re not there yet,” he said.

Small island states, who are among the most vulnerable to sea-level rise resulting from global warming, said they were concerned the issue could scupper the negotiations. “The inaction of many developed countries has the potential to stall talks and land a devastating blow to the hopes of the developing world for the establishment of a loss and damage funding facility,” said Conrod Hunte, a senior diplomat from Antigua and Barbuda.

Former Irish President Mary Robinson, who is also chair of the Elders group of former global leaders, urged negotiators at the climate talks to take a “real decision” on climate financing to vulnerable countries.

“We need to see a landing that brings money to the most vulnerable,” she told The AP on the sidelines of the climate conference in Egypt.

Robinson called for global financial institutions, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, to free more funds to help vulnerable nations recover and be prepared for climate change impacts.

“They actually have ways of opening up their lending much more without losing their triple-a rating,” she said.