12 July 2018: The number of countries that have ratified the Paris Agreement on climate change has reached 179. With 18 more ratifications, the Paris Agreement will have the same number of Parties as the UNFCCC, which, with 197 Parties, is nearly universal.

Since February 2018, four countries have joined the treaty: Colombia (12 July 2018), Kuwait (23 April 2018), Mozambique (4 June 2018) and Tanzania (18 May 2018). [Status of Ratification of Paris Agreement] [UN Treaty Collection Paris Agreement Webpage] [Paris Agreement]

On 5 October 2016, the Paris Agreement achieved the threshold for entry into force. The treaty entered into force on 4 November 2016. The first session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 1) took place in Marrakech, Morocco, from 15-18 November 2016. The second part of the CMA first session (CMA 1-2) convened during the 23rd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 23) to the UNFCCC in Bonn, Germany, from 6-17 November 2017. The CMA will convene again during COP 24 in Katowice, Poland, from 3-14 December 2018.

Parties to the Convention that are not Parties to the Paris Agreement are able to attend the CMA as observers, but without the right to participate in the decision making process. [IISD RS Coverage of COP 23] [SDG Knowledge Hub Story on COP 23 Outcomes]