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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Commonwealth talks target climate | Commonwealth talks target climate |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Commonwealth leaders are meeting in Trinidad with climate change high on the agenda in the last major summit before the Copenhagen climate talks. | Commonwealth leaders are meeting in Trinidad with climate change high on the agenda in the last major summit before the Copenhagen climate talks. |
| For the first time, a number of other world leaders have been invited to take part in the biennial meeting. | For the first time, a number of other world leaders have been invited to take part in the biennial meeting. |
| UN chief Ban Ki-moon, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Danish PM Lars Rasmussen are attending to give weight to any statement on climate change. | UN chief Ban Ki-moon, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Danish PM Lars Rasmussen are attending to give weight to any statement on climate change. |
| Another key issue will be Rwanda's bid to join the Commonwealth. | Another key issue will be Rwanda's bid to join the Commonwealth. |
| The 60th anniversary Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Port of Spain will also discuss the issue of the venue for the 2011 Commonwealth summit - with the UK vowing to block Sri Lanka's bid. | The 60th anniversary Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Port of Spain will also discuss the issue of the venue for the 2011 Commonwealth summit - with the UK vowing to block Sri Lanka's bid. |
| Rising sea levels | Rising sea levels |
| The global summit on climate change is due to start in Copenhagen on 7 December, and the topic is the only issue on Commonwealth summit's agenda for the first day. | The global summit on climate change is due to start in Copenhagen on 7 December, and the topic is the only issue on Commonwealth summit's agenda for the first day. |
| About half of members, like the Maldives, are island states | About half of members, like the Maldives, are island states |
| UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown has described the meeting as "an important springboard towards Copenhagen". | UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown has described the meeting as "an important springboard towards Copenhagen". |
| About half of the Commonwealth's members are island states, many of them threatened by rising sea levels. | About half of the Commonwealth's members are island states, many of them threatened by rising sea levels. |
| Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Patrick Manning, who is hosting the three-day meeting, said he hoped the summit could boost momentum for an agreement on carbon emissions at Copenhagen, amid "concerns about the way the negotiations were going". | Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Patrick Manning, who is hosting the three-day meeting, said he hoped the summit could boost momentum for an agreement on carbon emissions at Copenhagen, amid "concerns about the way the negotiations were going". |
| "We hope to arrive at a political statement that can add value to the process that will culminate in Copenhagen next month... what we can do is raise our voices politically," he said. | "We hope to arrive at a political statement that can add value to the process that will culminate in Copenhagen next month... what we can do is raise our voices politically," he said. |
| The Commonwealth's 53 nations comprise about two billion people, a third of the planet's population. | The Commonwealth's 53 nations comprise about two billion people, a third of the planet's population. |
| The leaders are meeting days after pledges by the US and China to limit their greenhouse gas emissions, amid concerns that the Copenhagen meeting could fail to agree substantial cuts. | The leaders are meeting days after pledges by the US and China to limit their greenhouse gas emissions, amid concerns that the Copenhagen meeting could fail to agree substantial cuts. |
| India has admitted that China's decision to unveil emissions targets two weeks before the Copenhagen summit has put it under pressure. | |
| Indian Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said China's decision was a "wake-up call to India". | |
| But in another Commonwealth country, Australia, the government's plans to enact a law for an emissions trading scheme have been thrown into chaos by a revolt within the opposition Liberal Party, whose support is required to pass the bill. | |
| Rwanda membership | Rwanda membership |
| The summit will also discuss Rwanda's entry into the English-speaking club. | The summit will also discuss Rwanda's entry into the English-speaking club. |
| The Francophone nation has been seeking membership following disagreements with France over events leading up to the 1994 genocide. | The Francophone nation has been seeking membership following disagreements with France over events leading up to the 1994 genocide. |
| The issue is likely to be controversial. The nation's entry bid has received strong backing from some member states. | The issue is likely to be controversial. The nation's entry bid has received strong backing from some member states. |
| However, some rights activists are angry that entry would reward a nation they say is guilty of abuses dating back to the 1994 genocide. | However, some rights activists are angry that entry would reward a nation they say is guilty of abuses dating back to the 1994 genocide. |
| BBC diplomatic correspondent James Robbins, in Trinidad, says the leaders are expected to admit Rwanda. | BBC diplomatic correspondent James Robbins, in Trinidad, says the leaders are expected to admit Rwanda. |
| He says most of the leaders apparently believe that if Rwanda is admitted, then they will be able to apply peer pressure to improve the lives of its people. | He says most of the leaders apparently believe that if Rwanda is admitted, then they will be able to apply peer pressure to improve the lives of its people. |
| Zimbabwe's possible re-entry could also be brought up at the meeting. | Zimbabwe's possible re-entry could also be brought up at the meeting. |
| Sri Lanka controversy | |
| The UK has indicated it will try to block Sri Lanka's bid to host the next Commonwealth summit over its handling of the recent war. | |
| Tens of thousands of Sri Lankans are still displaced | |
| A UK government source said Mr Brown had "real concerns about Sri Lanka's bid". | |
| The source said: "We simply cannot be in a position where Sri Lanka - whose actions earlier this year had a huge impact on civilians, leading to thousands of displaced people without proper humanitarian access - is seen to be rewarded for its actions." | |
| The UN estimates the conflict with Tamil Tiger rebels left at least 7,000 civilians dead with 150,000 people still displaced and living in camps. | |
| At a state dinner ahead of the summit, the Queen acknowledged her hosts by wearing a gown featuring two of the Caribbean nation's national birds and its national flower. | At a state dinner ahead of the summit, the Queen acknowledged her hosts by wearing a gown featuring two of the Caribbean nation's national birds and its national flower. |
| At the banquet in the grounds of President George Maxwell Richards' official home in Port of Spain, she paid tribute to Trinidad's efforts to combat drug trafficking. | At the banquet in the grounds of President George Maxwell Richards' official home in Port of Spain, she paid tribute to Trinidad's efforts to combat drug trafficking. |