DEMARCHE ON CLIMATE CHANGE COOPERATION: SWEDEN

UNCLAS STOCKHOLM 000204

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KCHG SENV ECON PGOV EUN SW
SUBJECT: DEMARCHE ON CLIMATE CHANGE COOPERATION: SWEDEN
AGREES ON NEED FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES TO COMMIT; EU
LIKELY TO STICK WITH MIDTERM GOAL OF 30 PERCENT REDUCTION
BY 2020

REF: STATE 24257


1. (SBU) The Ambassador met with the PM's advisor on foreign
policy State Secretary Nicola Clase to deliver reftel
demarche on March 11. The Ambassador stressed that the
President is firmly committed to joining an international
agreement. Now it is time for the US and the EU to work
closely together. He focused on two issues, and asked for
Swedish support on both at the March 13-14 European Council
meeting: the EU should join us in insisting that China,
India, Brazil and the other major developing countries agree
in principle to make binding commitments, to be negotiated
individually through the UNFCC negotiations; the EU should
adopt a realistic mid-term carbon mitigation goal rather than
calling for all Annex I countries to reduce 25-40 percent
from 1990 levels, by 2020.


2. (SBU) Clase said she would attend the European Council
meeting with PM Reinfeldt. The Swedish government also saw
the need for the EU to work very closely with the US to
ensure a successful outcome in the UNFCC negotiations. She
also was concerned that there was no formal prepcon for the
UNFCC Conference of Parties meetings. She agreed that such
an agreement, to be successful, would require commitments
from the developing countries. PM Reinfeldt will have a
chance to discuss these issues with the Chinese president and
prime minister in a mid-April visit to China and Japan. She
had visited India in February, and relayed an Indian concern
that they not be lumped together with China. She suggested
we highlight the different circumstances of the developing
countries. She did not directly address the EU mid-term
mitigation goal, only saying there would only be full EU
agreement by the end of the French Presidency in December
2008 on the EC proposal. She did note that former Eastern
bloc EU members have a data problem with using the UN base
year of 1990, because they claim (she said raising her
eyebrows) they don't have good data for that year.


3. (SBU) In a follow-up March 12, DCM and Econ Counselor met
with Environment Ministry State Secretary Asa-Britt Karlsson
and Ambassador Erik Hammarskjold, who oversee Swedish climate
change negotiations. Karlsson adopted the same position as
Clase. She stressed "we know the US is doing good work to
reach an international agreement." She said Sweden
understands the need to have China and India make commitments
as part of such an agreement. But she noted little
flexibility on the EU mid-term goal. She said the EU
environment ministers had adopted on March 3 the goal of a 30
percent reduction by 2020, from 1990 levels, as the goal for
Annex I countries. She said there needs to be a united EU
position by Christmas 2008 for the international negotiations
to proceed on schedule.


4. (SBU) Comment: The Swedes can probably achieve the goal
of a 30 percent reduction by 2020, because their power sector
is independent of fossil fuels (a mix of nuclear and hydro
energy). But they tacitly recognize that many other EU
members cannot possibly do so especially without the EU
regional reallocation allowed to date by the UN negotiations.
They have a somewhat different philosophy, stressing the
need to set high goals. However, they will also be among
the EU members advocating for closer consultations with us as
the negotiations proceed.
WOOD