Talks on landmark plastic pollution treaty end without an agreement
Nations were meeting for an 11th day at the United Nations offices there to try to complete a treaty to end the plastic pollution crisis. They remain deadlocked over whether the treaty should reduce exponential growth of plastic production and put global, legally binding controls on toxic chemicals used to make plastics. Some 1,400 delegates took part in the talks.
The negotiations at the U.N. hub were supposed to be the last round and produce the first legally binding treaty on plastic pollution, including in the oceans. But just like at the meeting in South Korea last year, they're leaving without a treaty.
The biggest issue of the talks has been whether the treaty should impose caps on producing new plastic or focus instead on things like better design, recycling and reuse.
Powerful oil- and gas-producing nations and the plastics industry oppose production limits. They want a treaty focused on better waste management and reuse.
Every year, the world makes more than 400 million tons of new plastic, and that could grow by about 70% by 2040 without policy changes. About 100 countries want to limit production. Many have said it's also essential to address toxic chemicals used to make plastics.
Thursday was the last scheduled day of negotiations, but work continued into Friday.
Luis Vayas Valdivieso, the chair of the negotiating committee, wrote and presented two drafts of treaty text in Geneva based on the views expressed by the nations. The representatives from 183 countries didn't agree to use either one as the basis for their negotiations.
Valdivieso said Friday morning as the delegates reconvened in the assembly hall that no further action is being proposed on the latest draft.
After a three-hour session, he banged a gavel made of recycled plastic bottle tops from a Nairobi landfill and said the meeting was adjourned, to be resumed at a later date.
Inger Andersen, executive director of the United Nations Environment Program, said despite challenges, despite the disappointment, "we have to accept that significant progress was made."
This process won't stop, she said, but it's too soon to say how long it will take to get a treaty now.
Representatives of Norway, Australia, Tuvalu and others nations said they were deeply disappointed to be leaving Geneva without a treaty.
European Commissioner Jessika Roswall said the European Union and its member states had higher expectations for this meeting and while the latest draft falls short on their demands, it's a good basis for another negotiating session.
"The Earth is not ours only. We are stewards for those who come after us. Let us fulfill that duty," she said.
China's delegation said the fight against plastic pollution is a long marathon and that this temporary setback is a new starting point to forge consensus. It urged nations to work together to offer future generations a blue planet without plastic pollution.
Saudi Arabia said both drafts lacked balance, and Saudi and Kuwaiti negotiators said the latest proposal takes other states' views more into account and addressed plastic production, which they consider outside the scope of the treaty.
That draft, released early Friday, didn't include a limit on plastic production, but recognized that current levels of production and consumption are "unsustainable" and global action is needed. New language had been added to say these levels exceed current waste management capacities and are projected to increase further, "thereby necessitating a coordinated global response to halt and reverse such trends."
The objective of the treaty was also revamped to state that the accord would be based on a comprehensive approach that addresses the full lifecycle of plastics.
Science shows what it will take to end pollution and protect human health, said Bethanie Carney Almroth, an ecotoxicology professor at Sweden's University of Gothenburg who coleads the Scientists' Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty. The science supports addressing the full lifecycle of plastics, beginning with extraction and production, and restricting some chemicals to ensure plastics are safer and more sustainable, she added.
"The science has not changed," she said. "It cannot be down negotiated."
Environmentalists, waste pickers and Indigenous leaders and many business executives traveled to the talks to make their voices heard. Some used creative tactics, but are leaving disappointed. Indigenous leaders sought a treaty that recognizes their rights and knowledge.
A report published in the Lancet medical journal the day before the Geneva talks began described plastic pollution a "grave, growing and under-recognized danger" to health that is costing the world at least $1.5 trillion a year.
The report compared plastic to air and lead pollution and said plastic pollution's impact on health could be mitigated by laws and policies.
"Plastics cause disease and death from infancy to old age and are responsible for health-related economic losses exceeding $1.5 trillion annually," it said.
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New York Post
22 minutes ago
- New York Post
Trump's ‘quiet' stance after Alaska meeting with Putin suggests there's still ‘sticking points' to Ukraine peace, officials say
President Trump's vague, post-meeting press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska demonstrated that 'significant roadblocks' stand in the way of peace in Ukraine, several officials suggested Friday. 'That was different,' former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo quipped shortly after the Trump-Putin presser, where neither leader took questions from reporters — or offered details about what a possible cease-fire to halt the two-and-a-half-years-long war would entail. Pompeo, in an interview with Fox News host Brian Kilmeade, noted that Trump is usually 'very straightforward,' 'very forward leaning' and shares 'all the things that he can' with the press — but didn't in Anchorage. 'Clearly he felt in this instance, to deliver on behalf of America, the best thing to do was to be quiet,' the former Trump Cabinet official said. 4 Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo believes that President Trump was deliberately guarded after his meeting with Vladimir Putin. AFP via Getty Images Pompeo insisted that Americans shouldn't 'over-read that' but maintained Trump was 'pretty non-transparent,' suggesting, 'there are significant roadblocks along the way that remain. 'I think there's still significant sticking points along the way,' he added. 'They may have identified interests that they can work their way through, perhaps on economic matters and the like, but it sounds to me like sort of the central issue … Vladimir Putin's willingness to conduct a cease-fire with no condition … it doesn't sound like Putin showed up today ready to concede that core point.' House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast (R-Fla.) argued that Trump seemed to be 'clear-eyed' about negotiations with the Russian president at the summit. 'I think his posture showed that he was clear-eyed about what Vladimir Putin was saying and where Vladimir Putin was wrong,' Mast told Fox News. 'It is just crystal clear that Putin's back is against the wall,' the congressman continued. 'And I think [Trump] demonstrated that clearness with his very first action, before saying a word, with the fact that he flew B2 bombers over [Putin's] head.' 4 Congressman Brian Mast said it's clear Putin's 'back is against the wall.' REUTERS Mast argued the flyover was 'not an accident' and that it sent a message to the Russian strongman. 'It was a signal to [Putin] that when President Trump says, 'Hey, there could be very serious consequences,' he's saying that these serious consequences can be very far reaching,' the Florida Republican said. 'Maybe it's fires that we sell to European countries or other NATO countries that can reach Moscow or St. Petersburg or oil refiners or other things, or maybe it's other weapon systems that we get into the hands of the Ukrainians,' Mast said of potential consequences Russia could face. Razom for Ukraine, a nonprofit humanitarian aid and advocacy organization backing Kyiv in the fight against Russia, said in a statement that the meeting 'reaffirms that the only way to achieve a genuine peace is by pressuring Russia, not by believing Putin's lies that he wants peace.' 'Putin remains the sole obstacle to peace,' CEO Dora Chomiak said in the statement. 4 Mast also argued that the choice to fly B2 bombers was not an accident. AFP via Getty Images Chomiak noted that 'just before Putin landed in Alaska, Russia launched another massive air strike on Ukrainian civilians, reminding us all that he won't end Russia's invasion until he's forced to.' 'The idea that Putin believes there is a positive deal for him in the near future is deeply alarming,' she added, calling on Trump to 'immediately get Ukraine the weapons it needs to save innocent families from Putin's brutal attacks. 'Putin still has hope that he can conquer Ukraine. President Trump must prove him wrong.' Ukrainian Parliament member Oleksandr Merezhko argued that Putin came out the winner of 'the informational war' after the meeting, but appeared as an equal to Trump. 'He used Trump to show that he is not isolated,' Merezhko said, according to the New York Times. 4 Some officials said Putin remains the chief obstacle to peace. REUTERS Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky criticized Putin for repeating the 'same propagandistic clichés about the 'roots of the conflict' that his state television keeps repeating,' according to Reuters. 'The problem is Russian imperialism, not Ukraine's desire to live in freedom,' Lipavsky said. 'If Putin were serious about peace talks, Russia would not have been attacking Ukraine all day today.'
The Hill
an hour ago
- The Hill
5 takeaways from the Trump-Putin summit
President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin left the world guessing on Friday after a historic summit that yielded no details about what was discussed, what was agreed to and what remaining sticking points remain to ending the war with Ukraine. The two leaders holed up behind closed doors for around three hours at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska. What they talked about, however, remains largely a mystery as the two leaders, standing side-by-side at a joint news conference, revealed very little of what 'progress' they said was made. They took no questions from the press. Here are five takeaways from the summit. No deal on ceasefire but 'progress' made Trump at the press conference would only tease the fact that the two leaders had a 'productive meeting' and said they agreed on some things, but not others – without offering any details of what was discussed. 'I believe we had a very productive meeting. There were many, many points that we agreed on. Most of them, I would say a couple of big ones that we haven't quite gotten there, but we've made some headway. So there's no deal until there's a deal,' Trump said, adding that he would be calling European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky following the summit. 'It's ultimately up to them,' Trump said. Putin, for his part, stressed that his nation needs to eliminate what he called the 'primary roots' of the conflict, without elaborating on what those were. He acknowledged that some 'agreement' was made but also did not offer any details. 'I would like to hope that the agreement that we've reached together will help us bring closer that goal and will pave the path towards peace in Ukraine,' Putin said. 'We expect that Kyiv and European capitals will perceive that constructively, and that they won't throw a wrench in the works. They will not make any attempts to use some backroom dealings to conduct provocations to torpedo the nascent progress.' There was no mention of several high-stakes components on the table, including the U.S. staving off any further sanctions on Russia, a nuclear arms deal and security guarantees to Ukraine as part of a peace agreement. Trump had also teased the notion of having a second meeting that included Zelensky if the Alaska summit proved successful. So far, no further plans to meet have been revealed by any leader. Trump rolled out the red carpet — literally — for Putin's arrival in the U.S. Air Force One arrived at the base first, with Putin's presidential plane arriving about a half hour later. Both leaders emerged at the same time, walking down a red carpet and greeting each other warmly. Trump applauded while the Russian president walked to meet him, shaking hands and giving friendly arm taps while the two exchanged pleasantries before posing for photos. Putin later said at the press conference that he greeted Trump by saying 'good afternoon, dear neighbor.' In a remarkable move, Putin stepped into Trump's armored presidential limousine, known as the beast, and rode with Trump to the site of the summit at the base. Putin was seen laughing with Trump in the back seat as the motorcade drove away from the tarmac. The rapport between the two as they greeted one another stood in stark contrast to the sometimes harsh words Trump has had for his Russian counterpart as he struggles to reach a ceasefire deal to end the war with Ukraine. The meeting gave Putin an equal playing field with Trump. Putin later spoke first at his joint appearance with Trump, giving him the opportunity to set the tone and deliver a lengthy speech about Russian history and the importance of maintaining relations with the United States. Much remains a mystery Despite the talk of progress on both sides, neither Trump nor Putin offered any indication of how Russia and Ukraine had moved closer to a peace deal. And the press conference ended before reporters could try to fill in the blanks: Will Trump move ahead with sanctions to pressure Putin? Are there any plans for a second meeting involving Zelensky, as Trump had hoped for? Did they discuss territorial concessions or other contours of a peace deal? Maria Popova, an associate professor of political science at McGill University, said the ambiguity left two possibilities. 'The first one is Trump actually realizes that this is a no-go, that there's no progress,' in which case he may return to the drawing board with Zelensky and European leaders. The more pessimistic possibility for Ukraine is that Trump tries to force Zelensky to accept whatever terms Putin outlined. 'And when Zelensky and Europe don't want to take the deal, he will blame them for obstructing peace, and he'll get angry, and he'll say that Zelensky is irrational and about to lose his country.' Speaking with Fox News host Sean Hannity after the summit, Trump suggested Zelensky would need to make concessions to finalize a deal. 'I mean, a lot of points were agreed on, but there's not that much as, one or two pretty significant items, but I think they can be reached,' he said. 'Now it's really up to President Zelensky to get it done. And I would also say the European nations, they have to get involved a little bit, but it's up to President Zelensky.' Carefully choreographed around 'peace' Friday's meeting was carefully choreographed to bolster Trump's image as a peacemaker. Both the backdrop of the meeting and the press conference were emblazoned with the words 'Pursuing Peace.' The White House this week touted Nobel Peace Prize endorsements from various world leaders, including the heads of state from Israel, Cambodia, Pakistan, Armenia and Azerbaijan — all of whom were involved in conflicts that Trump helped end. However, Trump has been unable to halt the war in Ukraine or two of the world's other major wars: Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza, where mass starvation is taking hold, or the brutal civil war in Sudan. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday said she'd nominate Trump for the Nobel Prize if he managed to broker peace in Ukraine without giving Russia Ukrainian territory. Trump insisted the meeting went well despite having nothing to show for it. Kristina Hook, an assistant professor of conflict management at Kennesaw State University, said Trump's approach to Putin doesn't appear to be working. 'Trump's talk of 'progress' seems aimed at generating momentum, but the fundamental obstacle remains: Putin refuses to recognize Ukraine's sovereignty or its people's democratic right to choose their future. Until that changes, diplomacy is largely theater,' she said. 'Until the U.S. exerts real leverage to push Putin off his maximalist aims and toward respecting Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, Russia will choose to grind the war on.' Trump to call Zelensky, world leaders Trump said he planned to call Zelensky and NATO allies following the meeting, adding that he also expected to speak again to Putin soon. Robert Murrett, deputy director of Syracuse University's Institute for Security Policy and Law, said he was 'very encouraged' by Trump's commitment to keep allies in the loop. And he said the outcome would not come as a surprise in Europe. 'They had no anticipation for a dramatic step forward, a cease fire, any kind of thing, you know, halfway to a peace agreement,' he said. 'I think this is kind of the outcome that most of them expected.' There was no immediate reaction from Zelensky or European leaders on Friday night following the summit. Trump and Putin briefly discussed the location of their next meeting at the end of their joint press conference. 'Next time in Moscow,' Putin said in English, chuckling. 'Oh, that's an interesting one,' Trump said. 'I'll get a little heat on that one, but I, uh, I could see it possibly happening.'
Atlantic
an hour ago
- Atlantic
Trump Leaves Alaska Empty-Handed
So what was that all for? President Donald Trump emerged today from his summit with Russia's Vladimir Putin without a deal and without much to say. Trump rarely misses a chance to take advantage of a global stage. But when he stood next to Putin at the conclusion of their three-hour meeting, Trump offered few details about what the men had discussed. Stunningly, for a president who loves a press conference, he took no questions from the reporters assembled at a military base in Alaska. In his brief remarks, Trump conceded that he and Putin had not reached a deal to end the war in Ukraine or even pause the fighting. 'There's no deal until there's a deal,' the president said. He characterized their three-hour meeting—vaguely—as 'very productive.' Of the outstanding issues between the two sides, he admitted that 'one is probably significant,' but he didn't say what that was. 'We didn't get there but we have a very good chance of getting there,' Trump insisted. The Russian president, for his part, made mention of 'agreements' that had been struck behind closed doors. Yet Putin also provided no elaboration, leaving the distinct impression that it was a summit about nothing. If anything, Putin seemed to make clear that his demands regarding Ukraine haven't changed. In his usual coded way, he said an agreement could be reached only once the 'primary roots' of the conflict were 'eliminated'—which means, basically, that Ukraine should be part of Russia. 'We expect that Kyiv and European capitals will perceive that constructively and that they won't throw a wrench in the works,' Putin said, in what sounded like a warning. 'They will not make any backroom dealings to conduct provocations to torpedo the nascent progress.' As Putin and Trump boarded their respective airplanes for their flights home, Ukraine and Europe were left guessing as to what the coming days will bring. Will more missiles fly toward Kyiv? Will a second meeting involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky occur? The president was equally as vague in a Fox News interview taped after the summit, though he did suggest that the next steps in the process would be up to Zelensky. What was clear today was that Trump, who had once promised to bring the war to a close within 24 hours, left the summit empty-handed. 'Summits usually have deliverables. This meeting had none,' Michael McFaul, an ambassador to Russia under President Barack Obama, told me. 'I hope that they made some progress towards next steps in the peace process. But there is no evidence of that yet.' At their last summit, in Helsinki in 2018, Trump and Putin captivated the world when they took questions, revealing details of their private discussions as the American president sided with Moscow, rather than his own U.S. intelligence agencies, over Russia's 2016 election interference. This time, they quickly ducked offstage as reporters shouted in vain. When the two men did speak, they mostly delivered pleasantries. Putin even repeated Trump's talking point that Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 would never have happened had Trump been in office then. And Trump, once more, said that the two men 'had to put up with the Russia, Russia, Russia hoax.' That the summit happened at all was perceived by many as a victory for Putin, who, after years as an international pariah, was granted a photo with a U.S. president on American soil—on land that once belonged to Russia, no less. And he was greeted in an over-the-top, stage-managed welcome that involved a literal red carpet for a man accused of war crimes. Putin disembarked his plane this morning moments after Trump stepped off Air Force One, and the two men strode toward each other past parked F-22 fighter jets before meeting with a warm handshake and smiles. After posing for photographs, and quickly peering up at a military flyover that roared above them, the two men stepped into the presidential limousine, the heavily fortified vehicle known as 'the Beast.' The White House had announced earlier in the day that the two men would not have a previously planned one-on-one meeting, but would instead have a pair of sitdowns flanked by advisers. But here, in the backseat of the Beast, Putin had his time alone with Trump. As the limousine drove off the tarmac to the summit site, Putin could be seen in a rear window laughing. Putin and Trump were scheduled to have a formal meeting at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, followed by lunch. But after the first meeting ran long, extending to more than three hours, reporters were abruptly rushed to the room where the press conference would be staged. The second meeting had been canceled. Had there been a breakthrough or a blowup? Putin sported the better body language: He almost glowed as he spoke to the press, offering a history lesson about Alaska, while praising the 'neighborly' relations between the men. And, oddly, he got to speak first, even though Trump was the summit's host. Trump, in contrast, seemed subdued, only perking up when Putin ended their media appearance by suggesting that their next summit be in Moscow. 'I think Trump did not lose, but Putin clearly won. Putin got everything he could have wished for, but he's not home free yet,' John Bolton, who was a national security adviser in Trump's first term, told me. 'Zelensky and the Europeans must be dismayed. And I thought Trump looked very tired at the press event. Putin looked energetic.' Putin seemed eager to broaden the conversation beyond Ukraine. He brought Russian business leaders to Alaska, hoping to play to Trump's hopes of better economic relations between the two countries, and perhaps strike a rare-earth-minerals deal. He also suggested earlier this week that he would revisit a nuclear-arms agreement, perhaps allowing Trump to leave the summit with some sort of win that did not involve Ukraine. But nothing was announced on those fronts either. The fear in Kyiv and across Europe was that Trump is so desperate for the fighting to stop, he might have agreed to Putin's terms regardless of what Ukraine wants. That did not happen, which was cheered across the continent, and Trump said he would soon consult with Zelensky and NATO. But Putin has shown no sign of compromising his positions. He wants Russia to keep the territory it conquered, and Ukraine to forgo the security guarantees that could prevent Moscow from attacking again. Those terms are nonstarters for Ukraine. The Europeans and Ukrainians had good reason to be nervous about today's summit. Trump has spent most of his decade on the global stage being extraordinarily deferential to Putin, which continued when he returned to the White House this year. He initially sided with Russia—even blaming Ukraine for causing its own invasion—before slowly souring on Putin's refusal to end the war. This summit came together in about a week's time' final details were still being arranged even as some of Putin's delegation arrived in Alaska yesterday. Trump's personal envoy, Steve Witkoff, had made several visits to Moscow in recent months. He had been in the Middle East when he received word through a back channel that Putin might finally be willing to come to the table given Trump's more hostile rhetoric toward Putin and threat of sanctions. After a series of meetings with key Trump senior aides and multiple flights across the Atlantic, Witkoff met again with Putin and accepted the offer of a summit. (He also accepted a twisted gift: Putin presented Witkoff an Order of Lenin award to pass along to a senior CIA official whose son had been killed in Ukraine fighting alongside Russia.) Summits, particularly those as high-stakes as ones between American and Russian presidents, usually take weeks if not months to plan. Everything is carefully choreographed: the agenda, the participants, the ceremony. Normally, the outcome is more or less predetermined: In the days before the actual summit, aides hash out some sort of agreement so the two leaders simply need to show up and shake hands to make the deal official. That was clearly not the case today—or in other Trump-Putin meetings. Trump had met with Putin seven previous times, all but one coming on the sidelines of larger summits and all friendly. The first was at the G20 in Hamburg, Germany, in 2017, when the two men sat next to each other for an hours-long leaders dinner. Their last meeting, at the G20 in Osaka, Japan, in the fall of 2019, ended with Trump mockingly warning Putin to never interfere again in American elections, with a sarcastic smile and exaggerated finger wag. But Helsinki is the headliner. It came against the backdrop of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into possible ties between the Trump campaign and Moscow. I was one of the two American journalists called upon to ask a question, and I posed to Trump whether he believed Putin or his own U.S. intelligence agencies about Russia's interference in the 2016 election. Putin glared at me. Trump sided with Moscow. The eruption on both sides of the Atlantic was fierce and immediate, and even some loyal Republicans said they thought Trump's answer was a betrayal of American values. Some of Trump's top aides—including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Chief of Staff John Kelly—were photographed with pained expressions on their faces. Fiona Hill, Trump's Russia adviser, told me later she nearly faked a heart attack in a desperate attempt to get the summit to stop. Anchorage wasn't Helsinki. For that, Europe can be grateful. Trump didn't give away Ukrainian land to Russia or demand that Zelensky take a bad deal, at least immediately. But Putin did get much of what he wanted, including a high-profile summit and, most of all, more time to continue his war. When he boarded his plane to leave Alaska, he was spotted smiling again.
