Mr. Chairman,

1. I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

2. At this session, the Group of 77 and China looks to the AWG-KP to fulfil its mandate and adopt conclusions on the scale of emissions reduction for Annex I Parties in aggregate, and individual Annex I Party contributions to this aggregate scale - work that we expected would be completed in Copenhagen, a full year ago. However, it continued further to be concluded during 2010 sessions. Therefore, we urge Annex I Parties to fulfil their legal obligation and show the necessary political will and leadership in combating climate change. They should acknowledge the gap between the pledges now on the table and what is really needed, and should bring forward quantified emission limitation and reduction commitments that are commensurate with the emission reductions that the science urgently demands.

3. As the impacts of climate change become impossible to ignore around the world, it is clearer than ever that the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol must have truly ambitious quantified emission reductions for the developed countries.

Mr. Chairman,

4. The continuity of the Kyoto Protocol is an essential element for the climate change regime. It is the right time for the AWG-KP to finish its work and adopt the Amendment to enable us to avoid a gap between commitment periods. Any gap between the first and second commitment periods would have serious implications for the market and for our Climate System and of course to our Mother Earth.

5. The definition of new quantified emission reduction commitments for Annex I Parties under the KP is a legal obligation that must be met and is a cornerstone of the Cancún outcome as a whole. In this regard, the group insists and will not compromise on the second commitment period by annex I parties. The G77 believes that at this session we should be able to reach agreement on a five-year commitment period or more, with a single, legally binding base year of 1990.

Mr. Chairman,

6. Time is short and it is essential now for us to progress as quickly as possible to agree on quantified emission limitation and reduction commitments for Annex I Parties and adopt a second commitment period for Kyoto Protocol. Failure to do so, however, would send a negative signal regarding the readiness of Annex I Parties to take forward their legal obligations under the Protocol, and their readiness to contribute to a strong climate change regime. It is imperative to strengthen the efforts to address the challenge of climate change and maintain the equity with the Mother Earth.

7. The Kyoto Protocol has showed its effectiveness in delivering real emission reductions, at lowest cost to Annex I Parties. The task for us to complete here in Cancun is, therefore, to build on this success by setting more ambitious quantified emission reduction commitments for the 2nd and subsequent Commitment Periods.

8. We have every confidence that our partners will soon show the real leadership, urgently needed, in order to ensure that the AWG-KP delivers the results of its work pursuant to decision 1/CMP.1 for adoption by the CMP at this session.

Mr. Chairman,

9. Finally, I assure you of the Group's continuous support and readiness to engage constructively in the process of negotiations.

I thank you.