Opening Remarks

by H.E. Cho Tae-yul
Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Korea
at the Seoul Climate-Energy Conference 2014

September 3, 2014
Grand Ballroom, Plaza Hotel

Dr. Kang Sung-Mo, President of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology,
Dr. Lee Seung-Hoon, Co-Chairman of the Green Growth Committee,
Mme. Hela Cheikhrouhou, Executive Director of the Green Climate Fund,
Mr. Yvo de Boer, Director-General of the Global Green Growth Institute,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure for me to address the Seoul Climate-Energy Conference 2014 jointly organized by the KAIST Graduate School of Green Growth, Green Technology Center, and Coalition for Our Common Future. I would like to thank the three co-hosts for their joint initiative in convening this important meeting at this critical juncture.

As you all know, at the invitation of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the UN Climate Summit will take place in New York on the 23rd of September, taking advantage of the UN General Assembly meeting. More than 150 heads of state as well as world's renowned leaders have already confirmed their presence at the Summit, a historic event to reinforce their political commitment to agree on the New Climate Regime by 2015, the deadline for the ongoing negotiations.

If the international community fails once again to reach an agreement by the deadline, our collective efforts to limit the increase of average global temperature to below 2 degrees Celsius compared with the level of pre-Industrial Revolution will surely fall through. The Summit represents the last chance to galvanize the leaders’ political will ahead of the negotiations deadline. As such, the forthcoming Summit holds indeed a great deal of importance. Fully aware of the significance of the Summit, the Korean Government is now contemplating over how to contribute to the Summit. Let me briefly share with you some of my thoughts on where we should go from here and what Korea will do at the Climate Summit.

Significance of the UN Climate Summit

Distinguished Guests,

We all vividly remember our deep frustration when COP 15 ended with no agreement back in 2009. More than one hundred world leaders came together in Copenhagen with high expectation to establish the post-2012 Climate Regime, only to find the divide between developed and developing countries too deep and wide. As a result, apart from the voluntary actions for mitigation, only fourteen percent of total greenhouse gas emissions are now regulated under the Kyoto Protocol.

Five years have elapsed since Copenhagen and we once again find ourselves standing at a crossroad. If we fail this time again, the magnitude of its consequences will be very different from that of year 2009. The very existence and credibility of the global climate regime are now at stake.

No doubt, climate change is an urgent issue that must be addressed today not tomorrow. Should we fail to act now, the focus will quickly shift from ‘how to stop’ to ‘how to adapt to the irreversible climate change’. The latest scientific data clearly indicate that the earth is fast approaching a tipping point beyond which humankind will not be able to prevent the disaster of climate change. The upcoming Summit will be a turning point that defines the future of humanity.

Where to Go from Here ?

Distinguished Guests,

Secretary–General Ban Ki-moon has repeatedly called upon the world leaders to come forward with clear visions and bold actions to reduce emissions and demonstrate political will for the successful conclusion of the 2015 agreement. As he emphasized time and again, this Summit should not be part of a negotiating process in which participants pursue their national interests only.

In fact, negotiations on climate change have been trapped in a vicious cycle of mutual distrust. Some parties are blaming the others for not exerting as much efforts as they are, while some others are arguing that responsible countries are continuously avoiding their responsibilities. A series of failures including the Copenhagen Conference resulted from the failure of removing mutual distrust and narrowing the gap between developed and developing countries. We therefore hope that the upcoming Summit will be an opportunity to break this vicious cycle and lay the foundation of mutual trust in the process of negotiations.

What will Korea Do at the Climate Summit?

Distinguished Guests,

The international community is looking at Korea, the first recipient-turned-donor country in the world, with high expectation on its role over all kinds of global issues. Climate change is no exception. We have been and will continue to be committed to live up to this expectation. However, the current external and internal circumstances, created mainly by the global economic downturn, pose a big challenge for Korea to carry on with its commitment. Recently, we have been witnessing heated debate at home on the Emission Trading Scheme, and growing concerns have been raised by the industry over our weakening competitiveness in the global market. Some still fear that we will only face greater financial burden and lose international competitiveness, should we invest prematurely in combating climate change. However, we are still convinced that climate change presents not only challenges but also opportunities to create new jobs, new markets, and bring new added value. We also believe that climate-related challenges can be overcome in a more effective and eco-friendly way with technological breakthrough.

With all these challenges and opportunities in mind, we will continue to seek ways to deliver on our promise in relation to the pre-2020 ambition for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

We are also seeking ways to play a bridging role between developed and developing countries in the climate change negotiations in order to contribute to the successful conclusion of the 2015 Agreement.

On top of this, we will try to find our unique role to play in coping with climate change. We will make utmost efforts to achieve the Creative Economy which aims to create a virtuous cycle between economic development and the preservation of the environment through a paradigm shift. Korea’s success in these efforts will make a significant contribution to the international efforts towards a low- carbon, climate-resilient economy. In this regard, the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) and the Global Climate Fund (GCF), both hosted by Korea, will also play an important role in terms of sharing experiences and lessons learned therefrom.

Distinguished Guests,

Climate change is the common task of our times. It is a huge challenge that can only be addressed through concerted efforts of the international community. We must work together to make the UN Climate Summit a success. Our discussions at this conference today will hopefully provide the way forward toward this end.

I would like to conclude my remarks by quoting Secretary General Ban’s recent remarks: “Change is in the air. Solutions exist. The race is on, and it’s time to lead”

Thank you very much. /END/