9 Dec 2015

Tuvalu PM confident of legally binding climate agreement

11:51 am on 9 December 2015
Tuvalu Prime Minister Enele Sopoaga delivers a speech during the opening day of the World Climate Change Conference 2015, COP21.

Tuvalu Prime Minister Enele Sopoaga delivers a speech during the opening day of the World Climate Change Conference 2015, COP21. Photo: ALAIN JOCARD / AFP

The Tuvalu prime minister, Enele Sopoaga, says he is positive the final climate agreement signed in Paris will see a 1.5 degrees warming limit.

A draft deal has to be signed by tomorrow morning, but a split remains between some developed and developing countries and some negotiators say that deadline is unlikely to be met.

Mr Sopoaga says it's vital the agreement includes a stand alone provision for 'loss and damage', ambitious mitigation targets and a global temperature rise of 1.5 degrees by the end of the century.

"We do that, or we forget about an agreement or even a decision out of COP 21. And this is our red line and our take. I must say that there is good will and there is almost a convergence of strong support to be as ambitious as possible, not less than below 1.5 degrees."

Enele Sopoaga says the European Union and G-77 countries including China have signalled their support for such a provision.

Get the RNZ app

for ad-free news and current affairs