巴黎氣候協議將不具法律約束力
John Kerry, the US secretary of state, has warned that the Paris climate change talks will not deliver a “treaty” that legally requires countries to cut carbon emissions, exposing international divisions over how to enforce a deal.
美國國務卿約翰克里(John Kerry)警告稱，巴黎氣候談判不會達成一項從法律上要求各國減排的“條約”，這暴露出國際社會對於如何執行協議的分歧。
The EU and many other countries have long argued that the accord due to be finalised next month should be an “international treaty” containing legally binding measures to cut emissions.
長期以來，歐盟(EU)和許多其他國家一直主張將於下月敲定的氣候協議應該是一項“國際條約”，包含具有法律約束力的措施以減少溫室氣體排放。
But in an interview with the Financial Times at Norfolk naval base in Virginia, which is threatened by the prospect of rising sea levels, Mr Kerry insisted that the agreement was “definitively not going to be a treaty”.
但在因海平面上升的前景而受到威脅的弗吉尼亞諾福克(Norfolk)海軍基地，接受英國《金融時報》採訪的克里堅稱，這項協議“一定不會成爲一項條約”。
It would still contain measures that would drive a “significant amount of investment” towards a low carbon global economy, he said.
他表示，協議仍將包含拉動“鉅額投資”，以促成低碳全球經濟的措施。
But he added: “They’re not going to be legally binding reduction targets like Kyoto or something,” a reference to the 1997 UN treaty that contained targets for cutting emissions that countries ratifying it were legally obliged to meet.
他提及1997年的聯合國氣候公約，補充道：“它們不會是諸如《京都議定書》(Kyoto Protocol)之類具有法律約束力的減排目標。”《京都議定書》包含了各國簽署批准、有法律義務遵守的減排目標。
Delegates from 195 countries are due to finalise a new global climate accord in Paris that will replace the Kyoto treaty, which failed to stop emissions rising. The US signed but did not ratify it, largely because it did not cover China, now the world’s largest carbon polluter.
來自195個國家的代表將在巴黎達成一項新的全球氣候協議，以替換未能遏制溫室氣體排放上升的《京都議定書》。美國在《京都議定書》上簽字了，但並未批准執行，主要原因是它不要求當今全球最大的碳排放國中國減排。
The Paris deal is supposed to cover all countries. But Mr Kerry’s comments underline the differences between the US and other nations over how to ensure it is robust enough to shift billions of dollars of investment away from fossil fuels and towards greener energy.
巴黎氣候協議應該覆蓋所有國家。但克里的評論凸顯出美國和其他國家在以下問題上的分歧——如何確保這項協議足夠強力，能夠將鉅額投資從化石燃料轉向更加清潔的能源。
A spokeswoman for the European Commission said: “For us and for many other countries, we would like the Paris agreement to be in the form of a protocol or a treaty. That represents the strongest expression of political will and also for the future it provides predictability and durability.”
歐盟委員會(European Commission)的一位女發言人表示：“對我們和其他許多國家而言，我們希望巴黎氣候協議採用議定書或者條約的形式。這是對政治意願最強大的表達，也爲未來提供了可預見性和可持續性。”
Privately, EU officials acknowledge that the Obama administration is eager for a deal in Paris, but not one with legally binding measures because these would strengthen arguments the deal needs approval from a hostile Senate.
私下裏，歐盟官員們承認，奧巴馬政府熱衷於在巴黎達成一項協議，但不是一項包含具有法律約束力的措施的協議，因爲那會加強有關該協議需要抱有敵意的美國參議院批准的主張。
To that end, negotiators are trying to craft an agreement that satisfies all sides. One option is to make its rules and procedures legally binding, but not the actual targets in many of the climate pledges that nearly 160 countries have made this year for the deal.
爲此，談判者正試圖擬定一項使各方滿意的協議。一個選擇是，制定具有法律約束力的規則和程序，但不提出實際目標。對於這項協議，近160個國家都在今年做出了氣候方面的目標承諾。
The issue is particularly sensitive ahead of the 2016 presidential election given the chasm between the Democrats and most of the Republicans running for the White House over the need and urgency to tackle climate change.
考慮到競選總統的民主黨候選人和大多數共和黨候選人在應對氣候變化的需求和迫切性方面的分歧，在2016年美國總統大選前，這個問題尤爲敏感。
Mr Kerry said it was too early to tell how the Republican-controlled Congress would respond to a global deal.
克里表示，目前要判斷共和黨控制的國會將如何迴應一項全球性協議還爲時過早。
