Brazil pulls out of countries at COP15 in fight for funding

Brazil has led an escalation of tensions between the developed bloc and the developing countries at the UN biodiversity COP15, which seeks to sign a new global biodiversity framework by the 19th, in Montreal.

In the early hours of Tuesday to Wednesday (14), a negotiation on the mobilization of resources ended with a stampede of all the developing countries present in the room. The abandonment of the negotiation, which had started at 7:00 pm, happened around 1:00 am, after Brazil asked for a two-minute break to consult mega-biodiverse countries with similar opinions.

Upon returning from the break, Brazilian diplomacy declared that it was speaking on behalf of all developing countries and stated that the bloc was dismayed by the lack of ambition and flexibility of developed countries, announcing that developing countries would withdraw from the room to allow a reflection by the developed block.

According to sources who participated in the informal consultation, the idea of ​​leaving the room did not come from the Brazilian negotiators, but the country led the articulation and represented the bloc when communicating the decision.

The departure of the delegations of developing countries from the negotiation rooms was repeated this Wednesday morning. The breach of protocol led the presidency of the COP15, led by China, to call a meeting between the heads of the delegation only.

According to heads of delegation present at the conversation, the tone was one of group therapy, with a softening of the content of the speeches and the emphasis on reaching an agreement by the end of the week. Brazil, however, would have been the only one to maintain a more aggressive posture, once again demanding rich countries for their responsibilities with the financing of biodiversity conservation.

During the afternoon, Brazilian diplomacy met again with the presidency of COP15 to discuss the episode of the stampede. The issue of resource mobilization will be negotiated again this Wednesday night — and will probably go on for another dawn, until this Thursday (15).

The expectation of different blocs is the minimum possible: that the countries stay inside the room. Otherwise, reaching an agreement may be unfeasible.

The bet on a more extreme posture sent mixed signals to COP15 actors who expected a more dialogic performance from Brazil after the presidential elections. Since then, according to one of the co-chairs of the negotiations, the country has been more constructive and has started to collaborate more with peers on various issues, which was interpreted as a new strategy linked to the change of government.

But the increase in charging for financing is also part of the proposals of the new government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT). The president-elect reinforced the call for rich countries to fulfill their climate finance pledges in his speech at the UN climate COP27 last month.

At COP15, the transitional government is represented by Braulio Dias, former executive secretary of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and current professor at UnB (University of Brasília). He was appointed over the weekend, when former environment ministers Marina Silva and Izabella Teixeira canceled their trips to Montreal to complete transition work – both are tipped to lead the Environment Ministry in the next term.

The transitional government is preparing a letter to rich countries asking them to reinforce their resource mobilization offers. The document can be published still on the night of this Wednesday (14).

After winning the support of 63 countries, last March, to propose a new exclusive fund for the conservation of biodiversity, last Saturday (10th), Brazil spoke on behalf of 69 countries in a plenary session of COP15, precisely in a declaration which called for a clear commitment from developed countries with funding.

Although the responsibility of the developed bloc to finance the conservation of biodiversity is foreseen by the text that constitutes the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (which initiated the COPs in 1992), the rich countries are reluctant to assume a commitment with the financing, which requires amounts in the trillions of dollars.

At the end of November, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, asked the member countries of the bloc to consider announcing new investments for biodiversity during COP15. The European Union announced in September that it must double its resources for biodiversity, reaching €7 billion (about R$39 billion) by 2027.

The actions foreseen in the new global biodiversity agreement —which includes the protection of at least 30% of the planet’s biodiverse areas— could cost US$ 967 billion (R$ 5.1 trillion), according to a study by TNC (The Nature Conservancy) and from the Paulson Institute.

_{the report Ana Carolina Amaral traveled to Montreal at the invitation of the NGO Avaaz.}