Ministerial-level talks began on Tuesday at the ongoing Cancun climate conference, signaling a call by top United Nations officials for delegates to iron out definitive measures on climate mitigation, adaptation and financing in the final three days of negotiations.

At the opening ceremony, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said that the COP16/CMP6 conference must represent a breakthrough in multilateral efforts to reach a new international framework to fight global warming.

“Climate Change was not created overnight, and it will not be solved overnight either, but if we work together, we can forge an effective long-term response to Climate Change,” he said to delegates. “The world is looking to you to adopt a balanced set of outcomes. We do not need final agreement on all the issues, but we do need progress on all the fronts.”

Christiana Figueres Olsen, the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), said that negotiators must reach balanced conciliation on mitigation proposals and all outstanding elements of Bali Road Map, the 2007 action plan that reviews the extension of the Kyoto Protocol beyond 2012, the launch of an adaptation fund and mechanisms for technology transfer and reducing deforestation.

“You have come to a crucial stage in your work,” she said. “You are now at the juncture at which you need to prove that the governments of the world are indeed ready to respond. A solid response to Climate Change demands nothing less than putting international climate policy back on track. You can only do that by moving beyond the boundaries of short-term national interests.”

Mexican President Felipe Calderón Hinojosa said at the inauguration that, “I respectfully call upon all parties to come to an agreement on a balanced package which will make it possible for us to move forward….because we cannot wait any longer. Time has run out.”

Keywords
Cancun, climate change, climate conference, COP16, COP16/CMP6, United Nations, Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon, global warming, Christiana Figueres, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, UNFCCC