European leaders defer decision on climate aid

A decision on the EU's contribution to financing global climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts will be taken in October, the bloc's leaders said on Friday at the end of a two-day summit in Brussels.

As expected, the summit produced no major breakthroughs in the ongoing financing debate (EE 12/06/09 http://www.endseurope.com/21545). EU leaders "hardly even discussed the issue", sources in the Council of Ministers told ENDS.

In a resolution drafted by the Czech presidency of the EU, the leaders pledged to take decisions "on all aspects of financing" at their next summit in October, "subject to developments in international negotiations".

In a change to earlier drafts of the resolution, the leaders also stressed that EU financing would be dependent on developing countries putting in place "comprehensive low-carbon development strategies".  

Green groups criticised the caveat, with WWF describing it as "a sure way to impede" ongoing international climate negotiations (EE 15/06/09 http://www.endseurope.com/21564). "The EU is playing a delaying tactic which can not help ensure an ambitious deal by the UN Copenhagen summit," the group said.

EU leaders "agreed unanimously" their intention to nominate Jose Manuel Barroso for a second five-year term as European Commission president (EE 18/06/09 http://www.endseurope.com/21599). The Czechs together with the incoming Swedish EU presidency will try to convince MEPs to approve Mr Barroso's nomination in July.

The centre-left EPP group in the parliament declared itself "delighted" by the council's support for Mr Barroso. But MEPs who oppose his re-appointment said there was no need to rush a decision. "We will vehemently oppose any vote on Barroso in July", said Greens/EFA group co-president Daniel Cohn-Bendit.

Further discussions by governments on a post-2012 international climate agreement will take place at a meeting of environment ministers in Luxembourg next week. Ministers will also attempt to reach political agreement on plans to revise the 1996 IPPC directive on industrial pollution.

The ministers will also adopt a resolution on a commission green paper on biowaste collection and recycling published last December (EE 08/12/08 http://www.endseurope.com/17196), according to a meeting agenda published by the council on Friday.

Follow-up: Council of Ministers

 http://consilium.europa.eu/showPage.aspx?lang=EN&id=1

 and resolution

 http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/ec/108622.pdf.

See also Czech presidency press release

http://www.cz2009.eu/en/news-and-documents/press-releases/today:-european-council-25480/,

plus reactions from the EPP group

http://www.epp.eu/newsdetail.php?hoofdmenuID=4&newsID=513&submenuID=49&subsubmenuID=147,

Green/EFA group

http://www.greens-efa.org/cms/pressreleases/dok/289/289930.eu_commission_presidency@en.htm,

WWF

http://www.panda.org/what_we_do/how_we_work/policy/wwf_europe_environment/news/?167661/EU-Council-continues-stalemate-on-climate-change

and Greenpeace

http://www.greenpeace.org/eu-unit/press-centre/press-releases2/eu-leaves-climate-change-to-G8.

See also environment ministers' meeting agenda

http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_Data/docs/pressdata/EN/mainact/108608.pdf.

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