UN biodiversity summit opens

YEREVAN

Armenia is hosting the UN COP17 biodiversity talks in its capital Yerevan. (AFP Photo)

Nearly 200 nations kicked off crucial U.N. biodiversity talks in Armenia on Oct. 19 as governments face pressure to salvage a landmark nature pact whose goals are slipping out of reach.

Most countries joined a historic call four years ago to halt and reverse the destruction of nature by 2030 but governments have been slow to act on these pledges.

Many goals of the so-called “Paris Agreement for Nature” are falling behind, including a centerpiece commitment to protect 30 percent of Earth’s land and oceans.

Some of the toughest objectives of the pact, such as cutting subsidies for fossil fuels and other powerful industries, have made little progress.

Armenian Environment Minister Hambardzum Matevosyan, who is presiding over the political negotiations known as COP17, said nations had “a unique chance to correct the course” in Yerevan. “Over the next two weeks our task will be to bridge the differences, build consensus and ensure that COP17 deliver results commensurate with the urgency of the challenges before us,” he said at the summit’s opening session.