Government of the Federated States of Micronesia

President Mori Attends the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Meeting in New York

Palikir, Pohnpei (FSM Information Services): September 22, 2009 – Yesterday, September 21st, FSM President Manny Mori attended the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) meeting in New York. The AOSIS Climate Change Summit represents an important opportunity to review the current status of negotiations on climate change, which will take place in Copenhagen in early December 2009. The main highlight of the Summit will be the adoption of the AOSIS Climate Change Declaration.

According to their website, AOSIS is the moral voice of the negotiations on climate change impacts, and was recently joined by the Group of Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in demanding that the new Copenhagen climate agreement limit temperature increases to as far below 1.5 degrees Celsius as possible. AOSIS targets have been supported recently by IPCC Chair Rajendra Pachauri and leading UK economist and climate expert Lord Nicholas Stern.

In a speech given earlier this year in Sweden, President Mori stated that “To safeguard the future existence and sustainability of small island states, every nation on this earth must take the hard course in Copenhagen, towards immediate and strong response to global warming” In his speech, he used figures that correlate with what AOSIS is lobbying for, which include agreements to limit temperature increase to less than 1.5 degrees, cut emissions by at least 45% by 2015 (AOSIS says by 2020) and by 85% by 2050, and stabilize CO2 at less than 350 parts per million (ppm) equivalent.

The AOSIS Summit is being held the day before what is expected to be the largest-ever gathering of world leaders on climate change, to be held at UN Headquarters on September 22nd, 2009. According to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the Climate Summit’s objective is to ‘mobilize the political will and vision’ required to achieve a successful outcome in Copenhagen.

The AOSIS High-Level Summit on Climate Change will take place from 2pm to 8pm at the Rose Centre, American Museum of Natural History, New York.

As soon as the final draft of the President’s speech becomes available, we will publish it on the FSMPIO website.