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DE RUEHFR #1520 3201705
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O 161705Z NOV 09
FM AMEMBASSY PARIS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7531
INFO RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA 2338
RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO 0001
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 1461
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 1760

UNCLAS PARIS 001520 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SENV ENRG KGHG FR
SUBJECT: France and Brazil Join Forces for "Bold and Audacious" 
Copenhagen 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY:  On Saturday, November 14, French President Sarkozy 
and Brazilian President Lula da Silva held a press conference in 
Paris to announce an agreement on a "Common Position on Climate 
Change," guided by the principles of fairness and equity.  At the 
press conference, President Sarkozy said that through extensive 
travel over the next several weeks he would promote a coalition of 
countries in Latin America, Europe, Africa and part of Asia to 
support the common position in Copenhagen.  Sarkozy rejected a 
statement of principle as an acceptable outcome in Copenhagen, 
insisting on some legal agreement.  He also called upon the United 
States to "be at the height of its responsibilities" in Copenhagen. 
Text of the Common Position in English and text and video of the 
press conference in French are available at http://www.elysee.fr 
END SUMMARY 
 
¶2.  (U) On Saturday, November 14 French President Sarkozy welcomed 
Brazilian President Lula, en route to the FAO World Summit on Food 
Security in Rome.  They issued a common position on climate change 
which pledged the governments to work together for a global response 
guided by "fairness and equity".  Specifically, they called upon 
Annex I countries to adopt "new and ambitious" greenhouse gas (GHG) 
reduction targets in line with their historical responsibilities and 
capabilities.  They will support a registry for measuring, reporting 
and verifying (MRV) both nationally appropriate mitigation actions 
(NAMAs) by developing countries and (financial) support received by 
developing countries, thus channeling more money to the developing 
world.  Also, they agree on the need for establishing a World 
Environmental Organization (WEO) to "give coherence" to actions, 
with impetus to be given in Copenhagen so the WEO could be 
established at Rio plus 20 in Rio de Janeiro in 2012. 
 
¶3.  (U) To build consensus on this joint position, French President 
Sarkozy plans to travel extensively.  At his press conference he 
implied that German Chancellor Merkel and Danish Prime Minister 
Rasmussen agree with his plan.  At the end of November he will go as 
UK Prime Minister Brown's guest to the Commonwealth Ministers 
meeting in Tobago, where he plans to talk to India.  He also would 
attend a possible meeting of Amazon River Basin countries in Manaus, 
Brazil.  Finally, he would make efforts to bring along some African 
countries.  Thus Sarkozy hopes to arrive in Copenhagen at the head 
of an impressive coalition of countries from Europe, Latin America, 
Africa, and parts of Asia. 
 
¶4. (U) The French press has played up Sarkozy's apparent criticism 
of the U.S. position.  When asked if he would accept a statement of 
principles from Copenhagen, Sarkozy dismisses this idea as contrary 
to the position of France.  Holding up Brazil as the first major 
emerging economy stating its position that it would commit to 
reducing its greenhouse gases, Sarkozy says that, "we will not 
accept that some countries agree to these commitments, and others 
say, 'we will see tomorrow.'" He then immediately adds, "you know 
the friendship that France feels for the U.S., and the confidence I 
have in President Obama.  But the first economy in the world ought 
to be at the height of its responsibilities." 
 
RIVKIN