The 15th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the fifth session of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol were launched yesterday. The main topic of the conference will be discussion of the new international agreement on cutting emissions of greenhouse gases to substitute the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012. The event will be attended by nearly 15,000 people coming from 192 UN member countries. The heads of states and governments of over 100 countries have confirmed that they will take part in the final part of the conference, which will be held on December 17-18. The visit of US President Barack Obama is supposed to be one of the most important events of the conference. The negotiations concerning the new agreement are scheduled to finish in 2010, and the agreements will be signed at the 16th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Climate Change, which is most likely to be held in Mexico. It is most likely also that the political agreement, containing concrete commitments of the parties, will be signed in Copenhagen.
