Greater global efforts and commitment were needed to tackle climate change, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said yesterday in Berlin at a meeting of representatives of 35 countries.
Germany and the EU want an agreement on a single, legally binding successor to the Kyoto Protocol, which expires next year, Merkel said, adding that there was no alternative to such an agreement.
"We are determined to move forward boldly," she said, noting that the current voluntary reductions of carbon dioxide were insufficient. Climate-damaging emissions were a worrying development and talks had so far been progressing at a snail's pace, Merkel said.
Yesterday's climate talks were in preparation for the UN summit in November in Durban, where there are hopes of reaching a new, legally binding climate treaty.
The meeting, hosted by Germany and South Africa, follows a fruitless two-week conference attended by most UN members in Bonn last month.
International Relations and Co-operation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane and German Environment Minister Norbert Roettgen are to announce what progress has been made to day.
Roettgen cited as a positive signal the fact that China and the US, among the biggest climate offenders, had sent their chief climate negotiators to the talks.
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