EU finance and environment ministers will meet this week in their respective council formations to consider the financing issue in EU negotiation positions prior to the European Council summit on 29-30 October and the UN climate meeting in Copenhagen. The finance and environment ministers have a joint responsibility for this crucial issue.

What are the major issues you wish to resolve at your respective council meetings?

"The day before the Environment council, the Ecofin council will adopt conclusions on climate financing and the key message from these will be discussed in the conclusions from the Environment council. The conclusions will discuss both the long-term need for resources and the immediate funding requirement for the period 2010-2012 (fixed start). It is our ambition to reach agreement at the Ecofin meeting on the EU’s negotiating positions regarding climate financing, says Sweden’s Minister for Finance, Anders Borg.

“Once the council conclusions from the Environment council are adopted, the EU should be ready with its negotiating positions in all important areas prior to Copenhagen. We will develop the EU’s positions with regard to a number of issues, thereby preparing ourselves for the next round of negotiations, within the UN framework, in Barcelona on 2-6 November,” says the Swedish Minister for the Environment, Andreas Carlgren.

How important is the issue of financing in order to reach an agreement in Copenhagen?

“Along side the undertakings to reduce emissions, financing is the most important issue in order to bring countries closer to each other in the negotiations. The EU has made the most far-reaching offers as regards reducing emissions and the most ambitious financing proposal,” Andreas Carlgren adds.

“The EU took a financing proposal to the G20 in Pittsburgh on 24 September, but it fell on deaf ears. It is important to drive the discussion forwards on a high political level to impart energy on the negotiations. The next time the EU will be having discussions on climate financing on a high political level will be at next week’s Major Economies Forum, on 18-19 October, and at the finance ministers’ G20 meeting on 6-7 November,” says Finance Minister Anders Borg.

Does the EU know what the other negotiating parties are prepared to put on the table, in the form of financing?

"In its communication from 10 September, the European Commission presented an assessment saying that around EUR 9.65 billion is needed per year up until 2020 for costs in developing countries, and a short-term need of about EUR 5-7 billion per year. It is important to point out that private funding will make up most of the climate financing. Considerable public money will also be needed, both in the short and the long term, and the EU is prepared to take its fair share of this," says Finance Minister Anders Borg.