Latest news with #LuisVayasValdivieso
LBCI
a day ago
- Politics
- LBCI
UN plastic pollution treaty talks progress not 'sufficient': Chair
Talks at the United Nations on forging a landmark treaty to combat the scourge of plastic pollution have made insufficient progress, the negotiations chair said Saturday in a frank mid-way assessment. "Progress made has not been sufficient," Ecuadoran diplomat Luis Vayas Valdivieso told delegates in a blunt summary, adding: "We have arrived at a critical stage where a real push to achieve our common goal is needed", ahead of the Thursday deadline. AFP
New Indian Express
2 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
India resists limits on plastic output
At this point, the Global Plastics Treaty in Geneva seems to be heading the Busan way, unable to resolve disagreements. Barely four days before the second part of the Inter-governmental Negotiating Committee's fifth session (INC-5.2) concludes, there are palpable signs of a thaw in the negotiations, but the words of INC-5.2 Chair and Ecuadorian diplomat Luis Vayas Valdivieso echo loudly: 'The progress that we have made is not sufficient.' The treaty is expected to deliver a legally-binding instrument by August 14 to take on global plastic pollution, but the 180 nations taking part in the negotiations have yet to find common ground. There are 32 Articles in the draft text, and the participating countries must agree on each sentence therein. Much to the contrary, disagreement has been the growing norm with contact groups making very little headway. It has come down to two crucial groups. The 'High Ambition Coalition', which includes the EU, Australia, African as well as Pacific nations, is pushing for cuts in plastic production and consumption, only to meet the pushback from 'Like-Minded Countries' such as Saudi Arabia, China, Russia, Iran, Kuwait and Bahrain. These petro-states, also major producers of plastic polymers, seek downstream measures such as plastic waste management and recycling, citing their economic requirements. The result: Critical areas like production and chemicals of concern have barely been addressed since the negotiations began on August 4. India, on its part, has opposed any global list of products with phase-out timelines, maintaining that the treaty must strictly deal with pollution.
Observer
2 days ago
- Politics
- Observer
UN plastic pollution treaty talks floundering
GENEVA: Talks on forging a groundbreaking treaty to combat the scourge of plastic pollution were floundering on Saturday, with progress slow and countries wildly at odds on what the proposed agreement should cover. The negotiations, which opened last Tuesday, have four working days left to strike a legally-binding instrument that would tackle the growing problem choking the environment. But in a blunt mid-way assessment, the talks chair warned the 184 countries gathered at the United Nations in Geneva that progress so far was well off track. Some countries called for areas where countries are far from agreement to be ditched completely for the sake of expediency. Others slammed the brinkmanship and said insistence on consensus could not be used as justification for sinking the more ambitious elements of the treaty. "Progress made has not been sufficient", Ecuadoran diplomat Luis Vayas Valdivieso told delegates in a frank summary as country delegations gathered in the assembly hall to take stock. "We have arrived at a critical stage where a real push to achieve our common goal is needed. "August 14 is not just a deadline for our work: it is a date by which we must deliver". Countries have reconvened at the UN in Geneva after the failure of the supposedly fifth and final round of talks in Busan, South Korea in 2024. After four days of talks, the draft text has ballooned from 22 to 35 pages — with the number of brackets in the text going up near five-fold to almost 1,500 as countries insert conflicting ideas. Vayas Valdivieso said states had had two and a half years to make such proposals. "Some articles still have unresolved issues and show little progress towards reaching a common understanding", he lamented. Kuwait spoke up for the so-called Like-Minded Group — a nebulous cluster of mostly oil-producing nations which rejects production limits and wants to focus on treating waste. Kuwait said the scope of the treaty had not been given "an equal and fair chance for discussion". "Let us agree on what we can agree... consensus must be the basis of all our decisions". But Uruguay insisted that doggedly clinging to consensus "cannot be used as a justification to not achieve our objectives". The talks process is mandated to look at the full life cycle of plastic, from production to pollution. Eirik Lindebjerg, global plastics adviser for the World Wide Fund for Nature, said that Kuwait's proposal was "another attempt to make it a waste management agreement" and to stifle talks reducing the amount of plastic and phasing out the most harmful elements. Saudi Arabia, speaking for the Arab Group, said the responsible way ahead was to start considering what bits of the text "may not make it to the final outcome due to irreconcilable divergence". "We cannot do everything everywhere all at once", Riyadh said, adding: "Let's not make the perfect the enemy of the good". Panama's negotiator Juan Monterrey Gomez slammed those countries wanting to stop the treaty from encompassing the entire life cycle of plastic. He said microplastics "are in our blood, in our lungs and in the first cry of a new-born child. Our bodies are living proof of a system that profits from poisoning us". He said it was a lie that "recycling alone will save us... we cannot recycle our way out of this crisis... when the poison is inside us". Plastic pollution is so ubiquitous that microplastics have been found on the highest mountain peaks, in the deepest ocean trench and scattered throughout almost every part of the human body. — AFP
Korea Herald
2 days ago
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Momentum sagging at UN plastic pollution treaty talks
GENEVA (AFP) -- Talks on forging a landmark treaty to combat the scourge of plastic pollution were stumbling Saturday, with progress slow and countries wildly at odds on how far the proposed agreement should go. The negotiations, which opened on Tuesday, have four working days left to strike a legally-binding instrument that would tackle the growing problem choking the environment. In a blunt mid-way assessment, talks chair Luis Vayas Valdivieso warned the 184 countries negotiating at the UN that they had to get shifting to get a deal. "Progress made has not been sufficient," Vayas told delegates. "A real push to achieve our common goal is needed," the Ecuadoran diplomat said, adding that Thursday was not a just deadline but "a date by which we must deliver. "Some articles still have unresolved issues and show little progress towards reaching a common understanding," Vayas lamented. The key fracture is between countries that want to focus on waste management and others who want a more ambitious treaty that also cuts production and eliminates use of the most toxic chemicals. And with the talks relying on finding consensus, it has become a game of brinkmanship. A diplomatic source told reporters that many informal meetings had been scrambled together for Sunday's day off to try and break the deadlock. "If nothing changes, we won't get there," the source added. Countries have reconvened in Geneva after the failure of the supposedly fifth and final round of negotiations in Busan in 2024. After four days of talks, the draft text has ballooned from 22 to 35 pages -- with the number of brackets in the text going up near five-fold to almost 1,500 as countries insert a blizzard of conflicting wishes and ideas. The talks are mandated to look at the full life cycle of plastic, from production to pollution, but some countries are unhappy with such a wide scope. Kuwait spoke up for the so-called Like-Minded Group -- a nebulous cluster of mostly oil-producing nations which rejects production limits and wants to focus on treating waste. "Let us agree on what we can agree. Consensus must be the basis of all our decisions," Kuwait insisted. Nudging in the same direction, Saudi Arabia, speaking for the Arab Group, said the responsible way ahead was to start considering what bits of the text "may not make it to the final outcome due to irreconcilable divergence." But given how little is truly agreed on, Uruguay warned that consensus "cannot be used as a justification to not achieve our objectives." Eirik Lindebjerg, global plastics adviser for the World Wide Fund for Nature, told Agence France-Presse that the Like-Minded Group's proposal was "another attempt to make it a waste management agreement," and to stifle talks on reducing the amount of plastic in circulation. The UN Environment Program is hosting the talks and swiftly called a press conference after the stock-take session. UNEP executive director Inger Andersen said a deal was "really within our grasp, even though today it might not look so." "Despite the fog of negotiations I'm really encouraged," she told reporters, insisting, "There is a pathway to success." Vayas added, "We need to accelerate. We need a better rhythm in this and we need to also work in such a way that it will be clear that we will deliver by the end." Afterward, Bjorn Beeler, executive director at IPEN, a global network aimed at limiting toxic chemicals, told AFP, "This whole process has not been able to take decisions and is still collecting ideas. We're sleepwalking towards a cliff and if we don't wake up, we're falling off." Plastic pollution is so ubiquitous that microplastics have been found on the highest mountain peaks, in the deepest ocean trench and scattered throughout almost every part of the human body. More than 400 million tonnes of plastic are produced globally each year, half of which is for single-use items. Plastic production is set to triple by 2060. Panama's negotiator Juan Monterrey Gomez took the floor to slam those countries wanting to stop the treaty from encompassing the entire life cycle of plastic. He said microplastics "are in our blood, in our lungs and in the first cry of a new-born child. Our bodies are living proof of a system that profits from poisoning us." "We cannot recycle our way out of this crisis."
Express Tribune
2 days ago
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Momentum sagging at UN plastic pollution treaty talks
Talks on forging a landmark treaty to combat the scourge of plastic pollution were stumbling Saturday, with progress slow and countries wildly at odds on how far the proposed agreement should go. The negotiations, which opened on Tuesday, have four working days left to strike a legally-binding instrument that would tackle the growing problem choking the environment. In a blunt mid-way assessment, talks chair Luis Vayas Valdivieso warned the 184 countries negotiating at the United Nations that they had to get shifting to get a deal. "Progress made has not been sufficient," Vayas told delegates. "A real push to achieve our common goal is needed," the Ecuadoran diplomat said, adding that Thursday was not a just deadline but "a date by which we must deliver. "Some articles still have unresolved issues and show little progress towards reaching a common understanding," Vayas lamented. The key fracture is between countries that want to focus on waste management and others who want a more ambitious treaty that also cuts production and eliminates use of the most toxic chemicals. And with the talks relying on finding consensus, it has become a game of brinkmanship. A diplomatic source told reporters that many informal meetings had been scrambled together for Sunday's day off to try and break the deadlock. "If nothing changes, we won't get there," the source added. Countries have reconvened in Geneva after the failure of the supposedly fifth and final round of negotiations in Busan, South Korea in 2024. After four days of talks, the draft text has ballooned from 22 to 35 pages — with the number of brackets in the text going up near five-fold to almost 1,500 as countries insert a blizzard of conflicting wishes and ideas. The talks are mandated to look at the full life cycle of plastic, from production to pollution, but some countries are unhappy with such a wide scope. Kuwait spoke up for the so-called Like-Minded Group — a nebulous cluster of mostly oil-producing nations which rejects production limits and wants to focus on treating waste. "Let us agree on what we can agree. Consensus must be the basis of all our decisions," Kuwait insisted. Nudging in the same direction, Saudi Arabia, speaking for the Arab Group, said the responsible way ahead was to start considering what bits of the text "may not make it to the final outcome due to irreconcilable divergence". But given how little is truly agreed on, Uruguay warned that consensus "cannot be used as a justification to not achieve our objectives". Eirik Lindebjerg, global plastics adviser for the World Wide Fund for Nature, told AFP that the Like-Minded Group's proposal was "another attempt to make it a waste management agreement", and to stifle talks on reducing the amount of plastic in circulation. The UN Environment Programme is hosting the talks and swiftly called a press conference after the stock-take session. UNEP executive director Inger Andersen said a deal was "really within our grasp, even though today it might not look so". "Despite the fog of negotiations I'm really encouraged," she told reporters, insisting: "There is a pathway to success." Vayas added: "We need to accelerate. We need a better rhythm in this and we need to also work in such a way that it will be clear that we will deliver by the end." Afterwards, Bjorn Beeler, executive director at IPEN, a global network aimed at limiting toxic chemicals, told AFP: "This whole process has not been able to take decisions and is still collecting ideas. We're sleepwalking towards a cliff and if we don't wake up, we're falling off." Plastic pollution is so ubiquitous that microplastics have been found on the highest mountain peaks, in the deepest ocean trench and scattered throughout almost every part of the human body. More than 400 million tonnes of plastic are produced globally each year, half of which is for single-use items. Plastic production is set to triple by 2060. Panama's negotiator Juan Monterrey Gomez took the floor to slam those countries wanting to stop the treaty from encompassing the entire life cycle of plastic. He said microplastics "are in our blood, in our lungs and in the first cry of a new-born child. Our bodies are living proof of a system that profits from poisoning us". "We cannot recycle our way out of this crisis."
