New Delhi:
Global climate talks in Copenhagen on December 5 would be at a "dead end" if a Danish draft proposal, urging the world to adopt 2020 as the year when emissions will peak, is put forward, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said on Tuesday.
"If the Denmark draft is any indication then we are heading to a dead end. The draft, which is not based on realistic estimations, is totally unacceptable to us," Ramesh said.
Stressing that there was no question of taking binding emission cuts, he said major emerging economies like China, South Africa and Brazil had prepared their own draft in Beijing to counter the Danish draft. This, he felt, "is more into what our expectations and objectives are."
"It is yet to get the support of the G-77. It will be unveiled tomorrow at the Copenhagen, giving our side of the view and our non-negotiable position."
Ramesh, who was on a two-day visit to China recently, along with counterparts from Brazil and South Africa, signed the 10-page draft which is being conceived as a counter to the text that will be released by western countries next week as a possible basis for talks at the meet slated to start on December 7.
"It meets our expectations and aspirations and supports our non-negotiable stands of no binding emission cuts, mitigation and adaptation actions to be supported by the international fund and no peaking year to be declared at the international forum," Ramesh added.
Speaking to NDTV, the Environment Minister reiterated India's position, adding that the current Danish draft which seeks emissions of all developing countries peak by 2025, was simply unacceptable to BASIC countries.
"Brazil, South Africa, India and China met in Bejing over the weekend. There was a draft of Copenhagen which had been out that had been prepared. We commented on it, discussed it, and now had an agreed draft between the four countries. The chairman of the G-77, Sudan, was also present. And we hope and expect that this draft will serve as the basis for negotiation," Jairam said.
Some excerpts from the interview:NDTV: What are some of the key points of the draft?
Jairam: Well the basic draft, you know which is the draft of these developing countries, protects our interest completely. It talks about the commitments that the developed countries have to undertake and the obligations that developing countries have. So, in my view, it's a very balanced draft. Now Denmark is also going to be unveiling a draft for negotiation, which I had a chance to look at. Clearly, there are elements in that draft that are worrisome for us, which are unacceptable to us. For example, they have introduced the concept of Peaking Year - that the developing countries will have their emissions peak in 2025. Now that's a complete 'NO NO' as far as India is concerned.
NDTV: Also the fact that some couple of days ago there was news that India had accepted some cuts. Now obviously there is lot of pressure on India and lot people are saying lot of things. Do we need to actually work out on some kind of strategy and go with a position of strength perhaps? That's what a lot of people have said that we need to be more cohesive with our policy.
Jairam: No I have always being saying that we must negotiate from a position of strength. And this is what even our Prime Minster has been saying - don't get isolated, don't abdicate the national interest and negotiate from India's point of view alone. I think those are the fundamental principles. Now we have taken on performance targets in energy, in industry, in forestry, in buildings, in transportation, in various sectors of the economy. We are not going to be taking any legally binding emission cuts, that's simply out of question.