FAVORABLE SPANISH REACTIONS TO USG ROLE IN BALI

UNCLAS MADRID 002277 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/WE, EUR/PGI, OES, OES/E, OES/EGC, OES/E/ENV, OES/OGC, OES/PCI, G:E.WEIGOLD DOE FOR PIA:S.RUEN, EERE:P.DICKERSON, J.OWEN PASS PRESIDENT'S COUNCIL ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ENRG KGHG SENV SP SUBJECT: FAVORABLE SPANISH REACTIONS TO USG ROLE IN BALI ¶1. (U) Spanish officials and commentators have praised the USG's role in contributing to the success of last week's UNFCC conference in Bali. Environment Minister Christina Narbona told reporters that the U.S. had taken a "very important step" toward reducing future emissions, and she valued the USG decision to add itself to the general consensus. She also recognized the importance of including commitments for developing countries. Environment Ministry Director General for Climate Change Teresa Ribera told attendees at a DCM-hosted lunch on renewable energy that the USG delegation had provided valuable leadership and had always expressed its positions, even unpopular ones, in a constructive way. The Director General also acknowledged the importance of gaining commitments from China and India, and she repeated the position expressed by the USG and others that varying levels of commitments are required from different developing countries. ¶2. (U) Press coverage also has been generally favorable. Of particular note is a normally-hostile columnist in the center-right ABC who, after meeting with DCM and Press Officer earlier this week, wrote a December 20 opinion piece praising the "enormous valor" of U/S Dobriansky and calling the U.S. the greatest "winner" of the conference. He cited USG policies and U.S. investments in clean technologies as "another inconvenient truth" for those who see the world in black and white, saying that to "pretend that the Danes are good and the Americans bad is dangerous foolishness." AGUIRRE