26 October 2009: Janos Pasztor, Director of the UN Secretary-General’s Climate Change Support Team, addressed a press conference in New York, US, where he said that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon views US engagement in climate change as vital to success.

He reported that the Danish Government is conducting consultations with other governments on the substance and form of the agreement that might emerge in Copenhagen. He said that during the remaining six weeks before the Copenhagen talks, further attention must be paid by Heads of State and Government to the key political issues, including targets and financing. Pasztor said Copenhagen could deliver agreement on a range of fast-track implementation measures, for which governments would need to provide credible resources. Highlighting the interrelation between targets and finance, he said there must be a push for the most ambitious mitigation and financial commitments, but added that it was difficult to say how far the Conference would go. [UNDPI press conference release]