The outcome of the Belém climate conference can be compared to a watered-down cocktail, a weak COPirinha, if you will: plenty of crushed ice, little substance to give it strength, and missing sugar in the form of climate finance to sweeten the deal. Hence, while the tumbler of climate diplomacy was well filled, its content hardly lifted spirits of anyone hoping for decisive climate action. (mehr …)
China’s decision to drop the Special and Differential Treatment (SDT) at the World Trade Organization (WTO) is less a legal earthquake than a strategic signal — but its symbolism matters. Announced by Premier Li Qiang on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, the move to forego the SDT that comes with being labelled a “developing country” in the WTO allows Beijing to claim a form of “grown‑up” membership in the global trading order while recalibrating its diplomacy toward key trade partners and developing countries. (mehr …)
