Climate Change: the International Legal Framework

The key international instruments to address climate change are the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its Kyoto Protocol.

The text of the UNFCCC was adopted at the United Nations Headquarters, New York on the 9 May 1992. It was opened for signature at the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro from 4 to 14 June 1992. The Convention entered into force on 21 March 1994. The ultimate objective of the Convention, set out in its Article 2, is "to achieve stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system within a time-frame sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, to ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner".

The UNFCCC sets out the framework for multilateral cooperation to tackle climate change, including provisions on the reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and providing assistance to developing countries to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change. The UNFCCC also requires developed countries to stabilise their carbon dioxide emissions at 1990 levels by the year 2000.

At the third session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP-3) in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997, Parties adopted the text of the Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC. The Kyoto Protocol is the next step in achieving the ultimate objective of the UNFCCC. It sets greenhouse gas emission limitation targets for developed countries, requiring an overall reduction in their emissions of around 5% by 2008-2012 compared to 1990 emission levels. The entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol is subject to ratification, acceptance, approval or accession by Parties to the Convention. It shall enter into force on the ninetieth day after the date on which not less than 55 Parties to the Convention, incorporating developed country Parties which accounted in total for at least 55 % of the total carbon dioxide emissions for 1990 from that group, have deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.

The texts of the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol, background information on these instruments, as well as their signatories can be found on the homepage of the UNFCCC Secretariat.

The European Union, one of the drivers of the international climate change process, is elaborating and implementing a series of policies and measures to reduce the Union's greenhouse gas emissions. These measures include the elaboration and implementation of a greenhouse gas emission allowance trading scheme. An overview of the Union's actions can be found on the homepage of the European Commission's Climate Change Unit.