Ministerial Meeting: Overview
The Resumed Sixth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP6)

23 July 2001

• The ministerial meeting during the resumed sixth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP6) chaired by Mr. Jan Pronk, Minister of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, opened at 15:00, 19 July, and closed at past 14:00, 23 July with the adoption of the draft COP decision, "Core Elements for the Implementation of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action," at its Plenary Meeting at 12:00, the same day. The session was originally scheduled to end on 22 July, one day earlier. The Japanese Delegation, headed by Minister of the Environment Yoriko Kawaguchi, consisted of Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Shigeo Uetake, Ambassador for International Economic Affairs/Global Environmental Affairs Kazuo Asakai of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Vice-Minister for International Affairs Hidehiro Konno of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Vice-Minister for Global Environmental Affairs Hironori Hamanaka of the Ministry of Environment and other officials.
• The purpose of the ministerial meeting of COP6 was to agree on rules to implement the Kyoto Protocol, following the failed attempt at COP6 in The Hague in November 2000. Among major issues, an relatively early agreement on sinks, which had been a point in dispute in The Hague, was reached, but confrontation on compliance issues (e.g. consequences in case of non-compliance) was not ironed out until the last minute, resulting in a one-day extension on the session.
• As a result of this meeting, a basic agreement on the "core elements" of the Kyoto Protocol was reached and momentum toward its entry into force in 2002 was increased. In particular, not a few European countries might ratify the Kyoto Protocol. However, detailed rules and procedures for the implementation of the decision of this meeting and detailed specific figures are left for subsequent negotiation to be worked out.
• As for sinks, Japan secured the scale of sinks on which it had insisted (limitation for Japan: 13 million tons C/yr). With respect to the issue of compliance, certain rules were agreed, but the focal point of whether or not to make the rules legally binding was left to the first session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (COP/MoP) after the Kyoto Protocol enters into force. Japan publicized its ongoing aid to developing countries related to climate change on this occasion as much as possible.