At climate change talks, key negotiator sees progress on several fronts

A key official involved in the ongoing talks in Bonn on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change said late on Thursday that negotiators had made some progress over the past few days in several areas.

The President of the current session of the Conference of the Parties to the treaty, Dutch Environment Minister Jan Pronk, told the press yesterday evening that he was pleased with the work done this week by negotiation groups on climate change.

Mr. Pronk said agreement had been reached on a number of issues, including those related to the Global Environment Facility, a mechanism established to forge international cooperation and finance actions to address critical threats to the environment. He also said that an agreement on technology transfer was close.

The Conference President offered a positive appraisal of some of the interventions made during the talks, including the statement by the United States, which he said reflected a constructive approach. He called the statement by the "Group of 77" developing countries encouraging and the one by the European Union heartening.

The Bonn talks are scheduled to continue over the weekend. Participating ministers and diplomats are working to finalize the rulebook for implementing the Convention's Kyoto Protocol, which sets legally binding targets and timetables for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

The negotiators also aim to adopt a package of measures to strengthen financial and technical cooperation between developed and developing countries on climate-friendly policies and technologies.