No overall deal likely in Cancun, Mexican climate ambassador says

Aug 12, 2010, 14:17 GMT

Stockholm - The upcoming United Nations summit in Mexico on climate change will likely focus on achieving 'a comprehensive set of decisions' but not an overall agreement, Mexico's climate ambassador said Thursday in Stockholm.

Luis Alfonso de Alba visited the Swedish capital after attending a round of preparatory talks that ended last week in Bonn, Germany, without apparent progress ahead of the UN summit in Cancun, which will get underway at the end of November.

'We are aiming at a comprehensive set of decisions at the outcome of Cancun, but that cannot be oversimplified and presented (whereas) we will have a single global treaty that will solve all global problems at one shot,' de Alba said.

The ambassador and other Mexican officials have travelled extensively to meet with different countries so they 'regain confidence' in the UN-led process, which should be seen as 'incremental,' he said.

De Alba added that 'not every decision has to go into a legally binding format,' allowing for more flexibility in the process.

Areas were agreements might be reached in Cancun include support for the poorest developing countries to tackle the impact of climate change, transfers of low-carbon technology, and the halting of tropical deforestation.