Copenhagen accord, and beyond

The recently concluded global climate negotiations had produced the Copenhagen Accord (the Accord), in which it recognized the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities set by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol.

It upheld the long term emissions reduction objects to limit global warming to less than 2C (3.6 Fahrenheit), provide funding and technology support for developing countries, and increase transparency on mitigation activities. But the Accord has been strongly criticized for not setting tough, legally binding limits on future carbon emissions for developed countries and not spelling out the mechanism of providing financing support to developing countries.

The difficulties to get more than 190 countries to agree on a global issue were unimaginably complicated. Most developed countries want to have a new unified post-2012 global legal framework, not a mere extension of existing legally binding document - Kyoto Protocol.