NEWLY-APPOINTED UN SPECIAL ENVOY ON CLIMATE CHANGE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SANTIAGO 000790 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/13/2017 TAGS: ECON ENRG IO PINR PREL SENV UNGA SUBJECT: NEWLY-APPOINTED UN SPECIAL ENVOY ON CLIMATE CHANGE RICARDO LAGOS MEETS IN SANTIAGO WITH OES A/S MCMURRAY Classified By: Ambassador Craig Kelly for reasons 1.5 (b and d). -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) Ricardo Lagos, one of three newly-appointed UN Special Representatives on Climate Change, told visiting OES A/S Claudia McMurray May 11 that it would be imperative for all nations -- including developing ones -- to agree on an agenda for addressing climate change. But it would also be important to recognize that countries could adopt different approaches to the problem, "a variable geometry" which takes into account the capabilities and needs of each nation. Lagos also broke down which nations - 25 in total - for which each of the three Special Representatives would take responsibility, stressing that UN SecGen Ban Ki-moon would deal with the United States. Lagos noted that he serves as the Club of Madrid's (a grouping of former presidents and prime ministers) representative to a climate change group organized by the UN Foundation. He suggested the group would produce a "blueprint" for post-2012 (post Kyoto) by the end of 2008. End summary. ¶2. (U) Embassy Santiago arranged for OES A/S Claudia McMurray, in Santiago to co-chair the U.S.-Chile Joint Commission Meeting on Science and Technology Cooeration (JCM) (septel),to meet May 11 with Ricardo Lagos, former president of Chile and one of three recently-named UN Special Representatives on Climate Change. A/S McMurray was accompanied by the Ambassador and E/Pol Counselor. -------------- Climate Change Omnipresent -------------- ¶3. (C) McMurray congratulated Lagos on his appointment and observed that the issue of climate change was "coming up everywhere," including the issuance of three major reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change within the past year. The U.S. had made positive contributions to these reports and to the overall debate. "The United States takes the issues very seriously and has accepted each report." The U.S. will be active in several upcoming meetings where climate change will be on the agenda, including at the G-8 in June. Lagos noted that UN SecGen Ban Ki-moon would seek to organize a dinner on the margins of the UNGA, after high-level meetings on climate change. The thought now would be to have leaders from only 15 nations attend the dinner; Lagos wondered if this was an unrealistic number. It was likely that all G-8 nations would be invited. Those countries - plus five more that together with the G-8 accounted for 75 percent of total emissions - would leave only two additional spots at the table and one of those would be allotted to a Small Island Nation. The dinner was clearly an important meeting and Lagos implied the circle of invitees should be wider. ¶4. (C) McMurray said China appeared anxious to play a positive role on climate change and that the USG was doing what it could to encourage Beijing. Treasury Secretary Paulson has a high-level dialogue with the Chinese on economic issues and energy and environmental topics are key elements of that discussion. Lagos replied it was "not possible" for developing nations (such as China) to "postpone a reckoning" by pleading that for "historical reasons" they should be allowed to continue to produce emissions now and attack environmental problems later. "This is not manageable. Everybody has to reduce, everybody has to agree." Still, Lagos chided gently, while he understood USG reluctance to agree to treaties such as Kyoto when countries such as China and India are not bound, it was important for the U.S. to step up as well. ¶5. (C) Lagos noted he is a member of the Club of Madrid, which brings together former presidents and prime ministers. He is the Club's lead representative on environmental issues, including to a climate change group that the UN Foundation has organized. This group hopes to produce a blueprint by the end of 2008, addressing post-2012 (post-Kyoto) issues. He expects that the Bali meeting in December 2007 will also push for faster action to address climate change, perhaps with recommendations that would be implemented beginning in 2010, a schedule Lagos thought might be too ambitious. McMurray agreed, saying that any such blueprint had to be "a thoughtful piece" which offered realistic solutions, taking into account different approaches to the challenges in different countries. -------------- Divvying Up Responsibilities -------------- ¶6. (C) After A/S McMurray briefed on U.S. cooperation with several nations (inter alia, Japan, Australia, Korea, India and China) - to provide seed money to private enterprise seeking to develop new "green" technologies, Lagos described the division of labor among the three Special Representatives. Of the 25 nations that are the UN's focus, Lagos had agreed to take responsibility for Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela, Grenada (as chair of the Small Island Nations Group),the UK and France. Ban Ki-moon had also asked him to take on discussions with Nigeria and Saudi Arabia but he had not yet decided whether to do so. Lagos said that he would begin talks first with Brazil -- "I want to ask them their views on how to deal with Chavez." ¶7. (C) Former UN General Assembly President Han Seung-soo would be responsible for India, Australia, New Zealand and China (Lagos smiled, "good luck with China") and perhaps a handful of other Asian countries. Norwegian ex-PM Gro Harlem Bruntland would take on several Eastern European countries and Russia. Lagos stressed that Ban Ki-moon would be solely responsible for talks with the U.S. -------------- "Variable Geometry" -------------- ¶8. (C) McMurray noted there seems to be tremendous interest from some countries to develop solutions and begin negotiations by the time of the Bali meeting in December. Lagos replied that he didn't think it would be possible to reach accord on workable solutions by that time, even for those countries that have ratified Kyoto. Moreover, it was important to consider what he called "variable geometry." Countries could propose different tracks, dependent on national capabilities and needs. For example, one might focus on capping emissions, another on exchange of credits, a third nation would seek to develop new technologies. It is hard to find a "one size fits all" approach. We can agree that we have a common position - human beings are responsible for creating the problem - but then each country can offer its own viable solutions. Lagos said he believes President Bush understands this approach. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶9. (C) Lagos, who has been on the receiving end of some local NGO opposition to his nomination. ostensibly because of a poor record on the environment during his stint as president, was clearly well-informed on the state of play of debate on climate change, rattling off the names and conclusions of several key reports. He seemed both enthusiastic about his new reponsibilities and pragmatic about the need to promote realistic policies, to not place blame, and to work cooperatively. End comment. ¶10. (U) A/S McMurray has cleared this message. KELLY