Minister of environment & forests Jayanthi Natarjan will reiterate once again India’s commitment to the Kyoto Protocol when she attends a brainstorming session of the BASIC countries in Beijing on Monday.
The environment ministers of the BASIC countries — Brazil, South Africa, India and China — who are also amongst the four biggest economies in the world — are confident of being able to frame a common position ahead of the crucial Durban climate conference next month.
Ms Natarajan’s position in Beijing gains significance because she had a lengthy interaction with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday in which she briefed him about the issues discussed at the earlier BASIC conclave hosted by South Africa, including the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol.
The meeting scheduled for Monday is expected to lay the grounds for a common negotiations agenda for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference to be held in Durban in November.
The Kyoto Protocol favours a legally binding agreement and calls for mandatory emission cuts by rich countries and voluntary cuts by developing nations. India is opposed to any legally binding cuts for developing countries.
Responding to a question on whether China was broadly in agreement with the recent statement issued by IBSA (India, Brazil and South Africa), a senior ministry of environment & forests(MoEF) mandarin pointed out, “China is broadly in agreement with that (IBSA) approach” on the key issue of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities. Describing the BASIC meeting at Beijing as “definitely very crucial”, the official added, “Some western nations are insistent that legally binding emissions be enforced on developing nations which is unacceptable. A common approach amongst the BASIC nations will work in our favour in Durban.” He added that the talks kick-starting on Monday comprised an informal meeting with no strict agenda as such.