TALKS RESUMED FOLLOWING SUSPENSION BY AFRICANS

COPENHAGEN, Denmark, December 14, 2009 - Talks resumed at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in the Danish capital, Copenhagen on Monday after African countries suspended negotiations over the future of a legally binding agreement.

The Africans are protesting attempts by some developed countries to merge the Kyoto Protocol and the outcome of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) outcome into a single agreement.

However, the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) and African nations want two legally binding outcomes to be adopted in Copenhagen that would strengthen both the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol.

Speaking on behalf the AOSIS, Grenada said that “it is important for small island developing states that the response to the climate change challenge has to be characterized by urgency, predictability, and a level of ambition that is sufficient to address the scale of the problem that we face”.

The ministerial portion of the conference, to be attended by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, will kick off Tuesday, while the high-level segment – which will see the participation of 115 heads of State – will begin later this week.

Environment Minister Michael Church, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter David, Ambassador Dessima Williams and lead negotiators for AOSIS, Leon Charles and Dr Spencer Thomas participated in Monday’s informal session.