UNFCCC - United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
192 countries ratified an international treaty called “the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change » (UNFCCC) which entered into force in 1994.
The objective of such a treaty was, first of all, to exchange information and best practices related to Climate Change adaptation and mitigation measures, and to foster national strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In 1997, an addition to the treaty, the so-called Kyoto Protocol, was adopted and ratified by 184 countries.
The Kyoto Protocol, which entered into force in 2005, sets binding targets for 37 industrialised countries and the European community for reducing greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 5% against 1990 levels over 2008-2012.
A new international agreement must be negotiated before the end of the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol in 2012. The final negotiations will take place within the frame of the UNFCCC in Copenhagen, Denmark in December 2009.
The EU had already committed to unilaterally reducing its emissions by 20% and reiterated its willingness to go up to a 30% reduction compared to 1990 levels, provided that other developed countries commit to “comparable reductions” and that “appropriate actions” are taken by developing countries.
