The week of negotiations in Busan, South Korea, failed to reach an agreement to finish drafting the first international treaty on plastics, said Ambassador Luis Vayas Valdivieso, who chairs the event. “We must build on the progress that has been made” during the week, he said. There is general agreement to resume the session at a later date.”
Earlier in the day, several countries had called for talks to end without a deal and wanted to convene new ones at a later date. “We are worried about the continued obstruction” of certain oil-producing countries, declared the French Minister of Energy, Olga Givernet. “A small minority” of States “are blocking the process,” confirmed the delegate of Fiji, Sivendra Michael, during a press conference which brought together representatives of Mexico, Rwanda, Panama and the European Union . “If you do not join us in obtaining an ambitious treaty […] so leave!” he said to this minority.
Frustrating week
“If we don’t get an ambitious treaty in Busan, it will be a global betrayal […] History will not forgive us for this. It’s time to act, or leave,” said the head of the Panamanian delegation, Juan Carlos Monterrey. After two years of talks, the more than 170 countries represented at the fifth and in principle final meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for a Treaty Against Plastic Pollution (INC-5) theoretically had until Sunday evening, or early Monday morning, to reach an agreement.
Frustration had increased throughout the week within the “Coalition of High Ambitions”, bringing together countries in favor of a strong treaty tackling the entire “life cycle” of plastic, it is that is to say from the production of polymers based on petroleum products to the management of plastic waste. This coalition opposed the small group led by Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran, who believe that the future treaty should only concern waste management and the recycling of plastic waste.
Delegates from ambitious countries, however, wanted to close the Busan conference on a positive tone. “We have made much-needed progress on a range of issues that will be crucial for the treaty to achieve its goal of protecting human health and the environment from the harmful effects of plastic pollution,” said the head of the delegation. Rwandan, Juliet Kabera, during the plenary session.