巴黎氣候談判仍面臨重大分歧

The EU has criticised the glacial pace of UN negotiations on a global deal to combat climate change due to be signed in Paris this year, in a sign of the growing unease among some countries about the eventual outcome of the agreement.

歐盟(EU)批評聯合國(UN)爲達成全球氣候變化協議的協商進程過於緩慢，這表明一些國家對最終可能形成的協議日益感到不安。各方計劃今年12月在巴黎簽署新氣候協議。

“Time is of the essence here,” said Ilze Pruse, a senior EU delegate, as a week of talks ended in Geneva where representatives from more than 190 nations produced an official negotiating text for the Paris pact, due to be signed in December.

190多個國家的代表在日內瓦舉行了爲期一週的會談，會上產生了巴黎氣候協議的正式談判文本。“時間已經十分緊迫，”歐盟高級代表伊爾澤•普魯謝(Ilze Pruse)在會後說。

The draft document ballooned from fewer than 40 pages to 86 pages during the week and is full of what Ms Pruse said were repetitive options that could have been easily trimmed before envoys knuckle down to the far harder task of deciding what may actually stay in the agreement at their next scheduled negotiating session in Bonn in June.

在日內瓦會談中，草案文件的篇幅從原本的不到40頁增加到86頁。普魯謝認爲，文本中存在許多重複的內容，在下一次會談時，這些很輕易就會被刪減。代表們預定今年6月在波恩舉行下次會談，着手處理一個難度大得多的任務——決定協議中應該保留哪些內容。

The Paris deal, if agreed, will be the first in more than 20 years of UN climate negotiations to require all countries, rich and poor, to do something to stem the rising greenhouse gas emissions that scientists say are warming the atmosphere, raising sea levels and fomenting more ferocious weather.

巴黎氣候協議一旦達成，將是聯合國氣候協商進程20多年來，首次要求所有國家，不論貧富，均需採取行動遏制不斷上升的溫室氣體排放。科學家們表示，溫室氣體排放正在導致大氣升溫、海平面上升，以及極端天氣現象增多。

It would effectively replace the 1997 Kyoto protocol, an international climate treaty that requires wealthy countries to cut their emissions but not nations then classed as developing, such as China, which is now the world’s biggest carbon polluter.

它將有效地取代1997年簽署的《京都議定書》，該條約只要求富國減排，對當時被界定爲發展中的國家則不作要求，比如現在已經是世界最大碳排放國的中國。

While the Geneva meeting was only supposed to come up with an official negotiating text for the Paris pact, informal talks during the week revealed that a vast array of differences remain between countries over what the final agreement should look like.

儘管日內瓦會議的目的只是爲巴黎協議形成一份正式談判文本，會議期間的非正式會談卻表明，各國對最終協議的內容還存在大量分歧。

“There remain deep and longstanding divisions on key issues,” said Alden Meyer of the US-based Union of Concerned Scientists.

“在關鍵問題上還存在着各種深刻、長期以來就一直存在的分歧，”總部在美國的憂思科學家聯盟(Union of Concerned Scientists)的奧爾登•邁耶(Alden Meyer)表示。

Small island states most at risk from rising sea levels are among those demanding the deal should include a firm date some time this century, perhaps as soon as 2050, for phasing out man-made emissions, the bulk of which come from burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas.

海平面上升對小島國家最爲不利，這些國家和其它一些國家一起，要求協議爲逐步停止人爲排放溫室氣體設定一個本世紀內的確定時限，比如2050年。人爲排放的很大一部分來自於燃燒煤、石油和天然氣等化石燃料。

Oil-rich Saudi Arabia and many other countries that do not rely as heavily on fossil fuel exports for their national income say this date is completely unrealistic and even later deadlines could be difficult.

石油大國沙特阿拉伯以及許多不那麼依賴化石燃料出口的國家則表示，這一期限根本就不切實際，即使是再晚一些的期限，要達成目標也十分困難。

The EU and many middle-income countries insist that whatever emissions targets are eventually pledged by countries as part of the agreement, they should be made as legally binding as possible, a position other countries are uneasy about.

歐盟及許多中等收入國家堅持認爲，無論各方最終在協議中達成何種排放目標，都應該儘可能使這些目標具有法律約束力。這種立場讓其他國家感到不安。

Meanwhile, the question of how much responsibility which developed versus developing countries should bear — and pay — for lowering emissions hangs over the whole agreement. The US and many others say 20-year-old divisions between rich and poor nations enshrined in earlier UN agreements cannot be maintained in Paris.

與此同時，關於發達國家和發展中國家應該分別承擔多少減排責任——以及分擔多少經費——的問題，困擾着整個協商進程。美國及其他許多國家稱，早前聯合國協議中存在了20年的富國與窮國的差別待遇，不能繼續保留在巴黎協議中。

With so many disagreements to be resolved, some countries are concerned that the final Paris deal may be far too weak to accomplish the emissions cuts that scientists say are necessary to ward off potentially dangerous changes in the climate.

等待解決的分歧如此之多，使得一些國家擔心最終的巴黎協議可能會缺乏力度，以至於無法完成必要的減排。科學家稱，爲了避免出現潛在的危險氣候變化，減排必須達到一定規模。

French climate envoy, Laurence Tubiana, said this was why it was crucial for the Paris pact to produce a system of long-lasting and increasing global action on climate change.

法國氣候問題特使洛朗斯•蒂比亞納(Laurence Tubiana)稱，正是出於這個原因，巴黎協議必須產生一項系統性的持久並逐步加強的全球應對氣候變化行動。

“We have to embed in the agreement an upscaling spiral of more actions,” she said.

“我們應該在協議中規定要採取更多的逐步升級的行動，”她稱。

While the EU was frustrated by the slow pace of progress in Geneva, Christiana Figueres, head of the Bonn-based UN secretariat that helps manage the talks, said the week had offered an invaluable opportunity for all delegates to meet and understand each other’s positions better before they start tougher negotiations in Bonn in June.

儘管歐盟對日內瓦會談進展緩慢感到失望，波恩幫助協調會談的聯合國祕書處的負責人克里斯蒂娜•菲格雷斯(Christiana Figueres)稱，本週爲所有代表提供了一次寶貴的機會，讓他們6月在波恩開始更艱難的談判前，更好地理解彼此立場。

“Of course, the downside is that in June they do have 86 pages to deal with and that is an added challenge,” she said.

“當然，不利的一面是他們6月要應付86頁的協議內容，這是一項額外挑戰，”她稱。

Climate campaigners, who often loudly criticise UN negotiations for being too slow and out of touch with the public’s desire for greater climate action, were unusually positive about the meeting.

經常公開批評聯合國談判進程緩慢、與公衆希望採取更多氣候應對措施的訴求脫節的氣候活動家，此次卻對會議持樂觀態度。

“Yes, the text has grown but it was always going to grow,” said Julie-Anne Richards of the Climate Action Network, adding it was much more important that countries had agreed relatively swiftly and harmoniously on what such a complicated document could look like.

“的確，文本內容是增加了，不過它總是要增加的，”氣候行動網(Climate Action Network)的朱莉-安妮•理查茲稱。她說，更爲重要的是，各國相對快速、和諧地就這樣一個看起來可能十分複雜的文本達成了一致。

Meanwhile, countries around the world are preparing to formally publish their emissions reduction targets ahead of the Paris meeting, with the EU, the US and others expected to divulge them before the end of March.

另外，世界各國正準備在巴黎會議前正式公佈各自的減排目標，歐盟、美國等預計在3月底前公佈。