China Refuses International Monitoring of Emissions

The United States and China are at a standoff in Copenhagen, reports The New York Times. Yes, it was relatively groundbreaking when China announced a goal for reducing the rate of growth of its greenhouse gas emissions. But when it comes to anyone monitoring their activities, it's an emphatic no. As for the United States, they won't agree to any deal without a guarantee that China is delivering on its promises.
 
This most recent impasse combined with the continued frustrations of the African-led bloc of developing nations does not bode well for a positive outcome by Friday.
 
The slow progress of the climate negotiations could pose problems later in the week, when the heads of government begin arriving. It is not customary for so many technical, financial and emotional issues to be unsettled when national leaders sit down to negotiate an agreement. President Obama and other world leaders have said that they hope to reach some interim agreement at the Copenhagen talks, but that a binding global accord is not likely to be completed until next year.
 
Without a commitment to transparency, the United States may turn to punitive tariffs on Chinese goods. Or we could see a hesitancy on the part of the government or corporations to engage with China on global warming, Representative Edward J. Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, told the Times.
 
China, for its part, is "pursuing a cautious and calculated strategy," perhaps waiting until the last minute before agreeing to anything. But the stakes are too high for a game of chicken.
 
“There is no time left for posturing or blaming,” [UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon] said at a news conference, before leaving for the Danish capital. “If everything is left to leaders to resolve at the last minute, we risk having a weak deal or no deal at all, and this will be a failure of potentially catastrophic consequences.”
 
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