BRASILIA (Reuters) – Brazil, host of this year’s United Nations climate dome, aims to persuade Europe, China and other developing economies to reduce enough greenhouse gas emissions to maintain global warming well below 2 degrees Celsius, three people with knowledge of the plans told Reuters.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and UN Secretary-General António Guterres scheduled an online meeting closed on Wednesday (23) to talk to leaders of the 35 largest economies in the world about.
The Brazilian ambassador and president of COP30, was last week in Beijing, where he discussed national promises with Chinese authorities.
He said that aligning the nationally determined contributions (NDCs) with the Paris agreement is not a strictly Brazilian goal, because each nation sets its own goal, but Brazil is encouraging countries to get there.
“We are not where Paris recommended,” he added. “We hope the numbers will approach.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Brazil did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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This year’s global climate dome, in November, marks the 10th anniversary of the year, when the signatories agreed to limit warm-up to well less than 2 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels.
So far, however, countries have only pledged to limit warming to about 2.6 degrees Celsius, a catastrophic level that, according to scientists, could lead to the collapse of various natural systems on which humans depend.
United States President Donald Trump, so it will be difficult to close the gap. Brazilian diplomats expect this to be possible with a more ambitious commitment from China, the largest polluter in the world, as well as other emerging and European economies.
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Brazilian diplomats are working in close collaboration with UN authorities to encourage countries to present new emission goals, NDCs, until September. Most countries did not meet February.
“In principle, Belém will go to history as the COP with NDCs below 1.5 or 2 degrees,” said one of the sources, who asked for anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic dynamics.
Given the importance of China for negotiations on the global climate, Brazil is emphasizing the theme as president this year of BRICS, which includes China and other major developing economies.
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Lula should meet in person with China President Xi Jinping, at least twice before the deadline of September for new promises, including a June meeting of BRICS leaders in Brazil.
China gave no indications that it plans to increase its goal, and its economy has shown signs of weakening due to a punitive trade war with the US.
“The economic concerns that are limiting the NDC of China still exist if they are not exacerbated by Trump’s fares,” said Yao Zhe, Greenpeace Global Policy Consultant in Beijing.
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The China Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not specifically comment on the country’s plans for its emissions goal.
“Climate governance is currently facing contrary winds. Only with the strengthening of multilateralism and international cooperation can we effectively address global issues,” said ministry spokesman in a statement.
(Report by Manuela Andreoni in Sao Paulo and Lisandra Paraguassu in Brasilia; Additional Reporting of Colleen How in Beijing and David Stanway in Singapore)
