Pretoria - With less than three months before the international Climate Summit, ministers from the BASIC group of countries - Brazil, South Africa, India and China, reiterated the importance of achieving a comprehensive, balanced and ambitious result in Durban.
They emphasized that Durban must advance all aspects of the negotiations, including the establishment of Annex I commitments for the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol and comparable commitments by non-Kyoto Protocol Annex I parties, the operationalization of Cancun decisions and resolving pending issues not concluded in Cancun.
The meeting formed part of South Africa's preparations for hosting the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP 17) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Durban in November and December this year.
In a joint statement the ministers emphasized the centrality of adaptation and means of implementation as part of a balanced and comprehensive outcome.
"These are elements needed to ensure balance in the completion of the Bali Road Map and Bali Action Plan.
"Ministers underlined that agreeing on the second commitment period is the central priority for Durban, as failure in this regard would generate a challenge to multilateralism and would undermine the rules based multilateral response to climate change under the UNFCCC.
"Ministers reiterated their support for a transparent and inclusive preparatory process to ensure that Durban takes a major step forward in working towards the perspective of a comprehensive, ambitious, fair and effective outcome, ensuring the full, effective and sustained implementation of the UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol," reads the communique.
The BASIC ministers also called for unilateral approaches, such as the inclusion of emissions from the aviation sector in the establishing of unilateral carbon accounting rules to address climate challenges.
The ministers said they had considered the challenges and possible priority elements on the road to COP17 and reaffirmed their determination to constructively engage with others to develop an ambitious and realistic outcome.
They also stressed the importance of ensuring an appropriate overview of the Green Climate Fund by the Conference of the parties, in order to ensure its adequate management and timely disbursements to developing countries.
On the Kyoto Protocol, the ministers reaffirmed a cornerstone of the climate change regime.
They underscored the role of the Kyoto Protocol in ensuring deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions from developed countries commensurate with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessments and the 2øC goal recognized in Cancun.
They stressed that the continuation of the flexibility mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol, in particular the Clean Development Mechanism is contingent upon the establishment of quantified emission reduction commitments. They urged parties to the Kyoto Protocol to work constructively to ensure that there is no gap between the first and second commitment periods.
The two-day meeting was held in Inhotim, Minas Gerais, and ended on Saturday.
