Climate convention negotiations face difficulties, but 1992 target feasible, chairman says.

• Position: Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee convention on climate change

Expectations were high as the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for a framework convention on climate change began its first session at the Westfields International Conference Center in a Washington, D.C. suburb on 4 February.

Most delegations hoped for a preliminary draft of the international instrument to reduce global warming. But after two weeks of strenuous deliberations, ending on 14 February, the Committee had agreed only on procedural and organizational matters.

It was not until the final hours of the session that agreement was achieved on negotiation guidelines and working groups. Lack of consensus among regional groups prevented the Committee from electing officers for those groups.

As the session ended, some delegates felt that two precious weeks had been wasted in negotiating on how to negotiate, slowing the process of formulating a text for signature at the UN Conference on Environment and Development to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 12 June 1992.

Committee Chairman Jean Ripert, who also headed the French delegation, had a more upbeat assessment. If there was a will to find a solution, there would be a convention in 12 months, he said. There might be difficulties, but the task was feasible.

Mr. Ripert warned delegates not to leave the session believing that all the Committee had done was talk about procedural things. Establishing working groups and defining their mandates already constituted the beginning of the negotiations. He said delegates should leave the meeting with an awareness of having done useful work.

The Committee is expected to meet three more times before the 1992 Conference: from 1 to 15 June in Nairobi, Kenya; from 9 to 18 September and from 9 to 20 December in Geneva.

Four Committee Vice-Chairmen were elected: Ahmed Djoghlaf of Algeria; Raul Estrada Oyuela of Argentina; T. Prabhakar Menon of India (later replaced by Chandrashekhar Dasgupta); and Ion Draghici of Romania, who also acted as Rapporteur. Michael Zammit Cutajar was appointed Executive Secretary of the Committee and Director of its ad hoc secretariat.

'In an integrated

manner'

Under the negotiation guidelines, all issues should be dealt with "in an integrated manner". Commitments to provide funds and transfer technology to developing countries should be an integral element in the negotiations.

Working Group I will deal not only with commitments for limiting and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but also with financial and...