INC-5: Faltering negotiations raise accusations of sabotage as time runs out

As the final negotiation round (INC-5) for a UN Global Plastic Treaty draws closer to an end, governments are expressing frustration at apparent stalling by petro-states who they say are “negotiating in bad faith.” Fears that the talks will fail to produce an impactful treaty text are growing, despite progress on financial proposals from the Global South. 

At least 220 lobbyists for the fossil fuel and chemical industries are attending the talks, which campaigners say is higher than the record number at the previous negotiation round. 

Benedict Wermter, a journalist and director of digital waste management company Veritas Edukasi Lingkungan, was at a plenary hall today at the INC-5 in Busan, Korea. He tells us: “The treaty is about to fail. Russia and Saudi Arabia and some other low-ambition countries are trying to water down the discussions.” 

“There is general frustration in the air and time is running out. People are finding this painful now since there still isn’t even a minimum consensus. Nothing is clear at the moment and it’s not looking hopeful.” 

“I am afraid it will end up as a toothless paper tiger, full of symbolic agreements that don’t really make an impact and the disruptive change that is actually needed. It will be impossible for them to try and claim this has been a success. If the UN cannot find a solution to these problems and it’s left to individual nations and industries that don’t have an incentive to make strong decisions, then only consumers will be able to stop the plastic flood.” 

The “like-minded group” 

A group of petrochemical states calling themselves the “like-minded group” is opposing efforts by the “High Ambition Coalition” countries (including EU states) that have been collectively campaigning to include binding reductions in fossil fuel production in the treaty. 

Attendees say these countries have been sabotaging negotiation progress by repeatedly calling for language changes and delaying discussions. 

Juan Carlos Monterrey, from the Panamanian delegation, announced: “Every time that we hesitate in these negotiations, every time that we soften our ambition, more plastic seeps into earth, and into us. Plastic pollution is not just a crisis, it is an assault on our planet, our people, and our future. And yet here we are, tip-toeing around the truth. Sidestepping ambition and ignoring the urgency that demands action.” 

Despite these concerns, some proposals from Global South negotiating blocs have gained momentum in the negotiations. The African Group of Negotiators, Group of Latin America and the Caribbean, Fiji, the Cook Islands, and Micronesia released a Conference Room Paper calling for a new dedicated fund to implement the plastics treaty. 

This would entail mostly funding provided by developed countries whose corporations have profited most from the plastics crisis. 

Over 100 countries supported the African Group finance proposal to be taken as a basis of negotiations, but there is reportedly a division between developed and donor countries, who are advocating for more private sector funding, utilizing existing funding structures like the GEF, providing funds in the form of loans, and making donor contributions voluntary, and developing/recipient countries, who want a dedicated fund to provide adequate public financing. 

Pacific Small Island Developing States called for a global target of 40% reduction by 2040, compared to 2025 levels, and 45 African countries also called for production reduction, as well as stringent measures on accountability and reporting.