Taoiseach Brian Cowen has said that Europe was fully prepared to move to a 30 per cent emissions cut by 2020 in the event of a comprehensive global deal being reached in Copenhagen.
On the 12th day of negotiations and within hours of the official deadline, Mr Cowen was cautious about a successful outcome to the negotiations on cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
With the negotiations still very much in doubt – and with the likelihood of the talks continuing for an extra unscheduled day – Irish negotiators were of the view that talks had reached an impasse.
One source close to the negotiations said that a judgement call now needed to be made buy political leaders about what kind of deal was necessary.
Mr Cowen referred to significant stumbling blocks including verification issues involving China and also a reluctance by some key players to agree to drop emissions by 50 per cent by 2050.
He emphasises that the EU was willing to “step up to the plate” in terms of its responsibilities.
Mr Cowen was speaking as he came out of a meeting of all 27 European leaders this afternoon.
He said that there was a lot of further discussion to take place and said that he and the Minister for the Environment John Gormley were keen to reach comprehensive deal that would have legally-binding force.
The Minister for the Environment, John Gormley, expressed concern about the deal falling short of the comprehensive agreement that he said was necessary.
“Unless we have binding targets then we're looking at a very much watered-down deal.
“We have to ask ourself the question if the public would thank us for a watered-down deal?” he asked.
The main stumbling blocks, according to the sources, are China’s objections to verification plus the reluctance of some key players to play their part in helping achieve targets of 50 per cent reductions in emissions by 2050, compared to 1990 levels.
“China won’t spell out how they will implement the actions. The US has continued talking about verification from China, but they could be using verification as a means of not doing enough,” said one source.
The sources also expressed frustration that many emerging economies had not delivered meaningful targets, with the exception of Indonesia and Brazil.
Pat Finnegan of the environmental group, Grian, who is involved in the negotiations, said he was happy that NGO has managed to lift the convention to a heads of State level, and that 120 leaders were present.
“They would not have come unless there was a potential deal there.”
As of today, he said there was a range of possible scenarios.
“The worst one first is what NGOs call the Greenwash scenario. I personally think that there would be a higher-end outcome. There’s not enough text for a legal agreement. I think they are working towards a holding agreement and then it comes down to what that’s called and what’s in it.
Friends of the Earth has described the latest draft text at the UN climate summit as an "embarrassment".
It called on world leaders to stay in Copenhagen until they agree a "real deal with actions strong enough to deliver on their aspirations”.
Irish policy officer Molly Walsh said that FoE would not led the US and Britain “bully African and small island states into accepting this failure.
“The big boys will do anything to avoid a PR disaster but nothing to avoid a climate disaster,” she said.
Oxfam international reacted to reports that President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were blocking an EU-wide move to cut carbon emissions by 30 per cent, in a high level meeting at the Copenhagen Climate Summit: “With the talks on the verge of collapse, what is needed from the EU is decisive leadership, not divisive action,” said Oxfam's Senior Policy Advisor Antonio Hill
“Merkel and Barroso’s lack of political courage at this critical stage in the negotiations is not only unhelpful but dangerous,” he said.