Curtain to rise on climate talks

COPENHAGEN, December 7 - The community of nations was meeting in Copenhagen on Monday for a climate conference in 12 days framed as a counterattack against an imminent danger for generations to come.

After the opening ceremonies and declarations, which will begin at 09:00 GMT, negotiators from 192 countries on a marathon of unprecedented scale and importance.

Over time cracks whip on his heels, delegates have to develop a plan to deal with "greenhouse" gases blamed for trapping solar heat and alteration of the Earth \ 's climate system.

They must develop a funding mechanism to help poor nations more vulnerable to the ravages of climate change, drought to floods, storms cycle of rising seas.

In late next week, its leaders will be arriving.

More than 100 heads of state or government - including the U.S. President Barack Obama, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao of China, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Brazil \ 's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and leaders of the European Union (EU) - are established to assist climax at a summit on December 18.

Its purpose is to seal a political agreement in outline ambitious.

Continuation of negotiations will take place in 2010 to complete the details and - if all goes well - from the end of 2012, the new pact to take effect.

"The negotiators have now the clearest signal ever of world leaders to develop sound proposals to implement early action," said Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the Convention United Nations Framework on Climate Change (UNFCCC) staging of the talks.

"Never in 17 years of climate negotiations so many different nations have made so many firm pledges together.

"So while there will be more steps on the path towards a future security environment, Copenhagen is already a turning point in the international response to climate change."



Antonio Hill of the British development charity Oxfam said the anger and distrust among the poorest countries could be alleviated with a great show of financial goodwill.

Developing countries need funds to ensure they are weaned from high-carbon energy and can strengthen your defenses against climate change impacts.

"The price of success in Copenhagen is 200 million (per year)," he said.

"We have to see this figure in overhead sparkling Christmas lights at the end of the summit. It \ 's peanuts compared with 8.4 trillion dollars we could find to save banks drowning."

The Bella Center, the venue of the conference, has been declared a territory of the United Nations.

Around 34,000 delegates, journalists and observers of the social base organizations to attend the talks, but only 15,000, the maximum allowed by safety regulations, are allowed.

Police at the weekend warned to act quickly to quell any violent protest. More than half of all of Denmark \ 's police force has been deployed in the capital.