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