Next round of UN climate talks set for Bangkok

A new round of climate talks will be held in Bangkok from August 30 to September 5 to prepare for minister-level negotiations at year end, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) said on Friday. The talks, at the level of senior officials, will take place at the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), it said in a press release issued from Bonn. The 195 parties to the UNFCCC are to meet in Doha, Qatar from November 26 to December 7 for their annual top-level parlay. The goal is to stride towards a new global pact on the greenhouse-gas problem. The deal would be completed by 2015 and take effect from 2020. A mid-year round of talks concluded in Bonn last week but was marked by procedural bickering and saw little progress. The pre-Qatar meeting had been dependent on getting financial support. "Pledges have been received from the state of Qatar, Norway, Germany, the UK, Japan and Sweden," the UNFCCC said.