It is a sequence which in itself sums up well all the ambivalence of the agreement reached at COP26, a “compromise full of contradictions”, concluded in pain, against global warming.
Before endorsing with a hammer blow the adoption, the British president of this 26th world climate conference, Alok Sharma, said in a voice moved and with tears in his eyes "deeply sorry" for this outcome. .
He had earlier estimated that the agreement "inaugurates a decade of growing ambition" on the climate.
An emotional Alok Sharma says he is "deeply sorry" for the way the # COP26 conference has unfolded.
Holding back tears, the COP president says "I understand the deep disappointment but it is also vital that we protect this package."
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- Sky News (@SkyNews) November 13, 2021
“I understand the deep disappointment but it is also vital that we protect this agreement,” he said.
The 200 countries of the COP26 reached with difficulty an agreement on Saturday evening to accelerate the fight against global warming.
Without ensuring to contain it at 1.5 ° C or responding to requests for assistance from poor countries, denounce the UN and NGOs.
Possibility of adjustments for "special national circumstances"
The text was adopted after two weeks of trying negotiations, like the last-minute, less restrictive changes introduced on the issue of fossil fuels at the request of China and India.
On the critical point of limiting temperatures, while the planet is according to the UN on a "catastrophic" trajectory of 2.7 ° C warming compared to the pre-industrial era, the text calls on member states to increase their reduction commitments more regularly than provided for in the Paris agreement, starting in 2022.
But with the possibility of adjustments for "particular national circumstances", a point which has aroused criticism from NGOs on the real ambitions of the text.
Moreover, the compromise found does not ensure compliance with the objectives of the 2015 Paris Agreement: to limit warming "well below" 2 ° C and if possible to 1.5 ° C.
