Climate talks: Five things to know

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The Hill:

nternational negotiators have been working for years on an agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions around the world to fight climate change.

 

The negotiations caught the American public’s attention this week when The New York Times reported that President Obama is pushing for a voluntary agreement that would allow him to bypass the Senate, which must approve all binding treaties.

 

The State Department denied the report, saying that since no agreement has been written, it’s premature to judge whether ratification would be necessary.

 

Republicans and some Democrats were furious at the notion that Obama would try to sidestep Congress, and promised to do all they could to avoid getting the United States involved in an international agreement on climate change.

 

With that in mind, here are five important things to know about the climate talks.

 

1. World leaders want to reach an agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions next year.

 

The United Nations, through its Framework Convention on Climate Change, agreed in 2011 to write a pact in 2015 to cut greenhouse gas emissions globally.

 

Under the plan, the pact must take effect in 2020, have legal force and be binding on all countries. Everything else is up for negotiation.