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World at breaking point, warns Hollande, as climate meet opens

PARIS — World leaders from over 150 countries opened the biggest-ever climate summit yesterday in an ambitious attempt to curb greenhouse gas emissions responsible for Earth’s rising temperatures, with French President Francois Hollande saying the world was at a “breaking point” in the fight against global warming.

High tension electric pylons are pictured on a smoggy day in New Delhi, India, November 30, 2015. The capitals of the world's two most populous nations, China and India, were blanketed in hazardous, choking smog on Monday as climate change talks began in Paris, where leaders of both countries are leading participants. Photo: Reuters

High tension electric pylons are pictured on a smoggy day in New Delhi, India, November 30, 2015. The capitals of the world's two most populous nations, China and India, were blanketed in hazardous, choking smog on Monday as climate change talks began in Paris, where leaders of both countries are leading participants. Photo: Reuters

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PARIS — World leaders from over 150 countries opened the biggest-ever climate summit yesterday in an ambitious attempt to curb greenhouse gas emissions responsible for Earth’s rising temperatures, with French President Francois Hollande saying the world was at a “breaking point” in the fight against global warming.

“Never have the stakes of an international meeting been so high, because we are talking about the future of the planet, the future of life,” said Mr Hollande.

“The hope of all of humanity rests on all of your shoulders. To resolve the climate crisis, goodwill, statements of intent are not enough. We are at breaking point,” he added in front of leaders such as United States President Barack Obama, his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The leaders will urge each other to find common cause in two weeks of bargaining to keep the rise in average global temperatures to within 2°C above pre-industrial levels to avert serious impacts from global warming, such as severe droughts, floods and rising sea levels.

Such a deal would be built on pledges on more than 180 countries to reduce their national carbon output, though by different rates.

After decades of struggling negotiations and the failure of a previous summit in Copenhagen six years ago, some form of landmark agreement appears all but assured by mid-December.

Countries involved in the talks are also discussing a long-term gas reduction goal to show a path away from fossil fuels, but significant gaps remain over what that goal should look like.

Other hurdles include financial support developed countries provide to their developing peers to help them reduce the emissions blamed for global warming and adapt to climate change. Developed countries have committed themselves to raising US$100 billion (S$141 billion) a year in such finance by 2020.

Developing countries are pushing developed countries to meet that pledge and do even more from 2020, but developed countries are reluctant to commit to figures.

Weighing in on the issue, Chinese President Xi also said it was crucial the climate talks addressed economic differences between nations and allowed different countries to develop their own solutions to the problem of global warming. “It is important to respect the differences among countries, especially developing countries,” he said.

Anxious to avoid a repeat of the failure in Copenhagen, major powers have tried this time to smooth some of the bumps in the way of an agreement before they arrive. The presidents, prime ministers and princes will make their cameo appearances at the outset of the conference rather than swooping in at the end.

Each leader is allowed a brief opening speech. The goal is to build momentum for consensus and avoid the messiness of past talks when diplomats put off the hard political choices until their bosses arrived.

In a sombre city where security has been tightened after Islamist militant attacks killed 130 people on Nov 13, the leaders also observed a minute’s silence yesterday in honour of the victims of the terror attacks.

Combating climate change will prove to be a rebuttal of terrorist efforts, Mr Obama said in his address at the summit.

“What greater rejection of those who would tear down our world than marshalling our best efforts to save it,” he said.

He also acknowledged that the United States is at least partly to blame for the life-threatening damage that environmental change has wrought, and urged world leaders to join him in fixing the problem.

“The United States not only recognises our role in creating this problem, we embrace our responsibility to do something about it,” he said, as he also set out the possible consequences of unchecked global warming. “Submerged countries, abandoned cities, fields that no longer grow,” he said.

The greatest threat to reaching a binding climate accord may be a loose coalition of developing nations, led by India, who argue that they should not be asked to limit their economic growth as a way of fixing a problem that was largely created by the others.

Mr Obama conceded that point.

“We know the truth that many nations have contributed little to climate change but will be the first to feel its most destructive effects,” he said.

He promised money to help the poorest nations transition to economies that depend less on burning fossil fuels, but he said a delay was not acceptable.

“And when it comes to climate change, that hour is almost upon us.” AGENCIES

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