Thaindian News

New Delhi, Dec 15 (IANS) Pushing for reforms of global institutions of governance, India has expressed apprehension that a legally binding agreement on greenhouse gas emissions, as agreed at Durban, can “slow down the emergence of emerging economies”.

“As the recent Durban discussions showed, there will be continued pressure to slow down the emergence of emerging countries, through mechanisms of legally binding agreements which would curtail critical energy and infrastructure development,” Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai said at a conference on emerging economies here Wednesday.

“In our own interest, as much as in our responsibility for the planet, emerging economies have no alternative but to become Green-focussed economies within one generation,” Mathai said.

“This will call for a technological revolution, which points to another set of economic policies necessary,” Mathai said.

Mathai’s comments seem to indicate India’s wariness with the outcome of the recent Durban climate conference that culminated with an agreement by both developed and emerging economies to accept a legally binding pact to slash greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.

Mathai also argued for a greater participation of emerging economies in global decision-making and institutions of governance.

“To have freedom and space for economic policy-making that seeks to increase participation in the global economy, it will be necessary for the emerging economies to have increased weightage in the global political discourse, and in the management of the global commons,” he said.

“The ability to pull our weight in reformed institutions of global governance (including international financial institutions), a visible capacity for self-defence with domestic capabilities in the requisite technologies, and diplomatic skills would all be essential.”

Mathai also underlined the need for emerging countries “to play their part in preserving the viability of global regimes and systems of trade and transport, tweaking them to remove distortions which deliberately work against them”.

“But individually or as a group, emerging economies must encourage greater emphasis on trade and connectivity,” he said.

The economic policies of emerging countries, Mathai argued, will have to take into account the political balance in the world and make choices that are best suited for navigating a sustainable course in this complicated scenario.