Europe could forget about a new Kyoto-agreement!

Is this an echo of the past - or just a negotiation attitude? Harlan Watson, the chief US climate negotiator has, according to Swedish press, said that Europe can stop dreaming of a new Kyoto-agreement. The reason is, he says, that developing countries like Brazil, China and India, do not want to sign. The unbalance in competition would then harm US jobs, which can not be allowed.

Firstly the real harm to all jobs comes from more emissions. Secondly the US emissions are 5-20 times those of the countries he mention (on a per capita basis) if we should dwell on the word "fair". Thirdly how fair is the competition today with the differences in wages and in job conditions?

But there are also other signals from the US. A Californian delegation is studying the opportunity to start an emissions trading of their own, but also considered a joint trading scheme with Europe! Could we end up with a joint European-US trading scheme that excludes only Washington DC??

Or was it just the professional negotiators voice we heard? Giving a bid that no one can take?