Proposal for a Council Decision on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, of the Paris Agreement adopted under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

The proposal is for a Council Decision, to be adopted pursuant to Article 218(5) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, of the Paris Agreement to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

At the 21st Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (known as COP 21), which took place in Paris from 30 November to 12 December 2015, an agreement was adopted, concerning the global reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The Agreement will enter into force on the 30th day after the date on which at least 55 Parties to the Convention accounting in total for at least an estimated 55% of total greenhouse gas emissions, have deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.

The Agreement will be open for signature by the parties to the UNFCCC between 22 April 2016 and 21 April 2017. Parties to the UNFCCC include the European Union and its Member States. A high-level signature ceremony will take place in New York on 22 April 2016.

See also:
- Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council. The road from Paris: assessing the implications of the Paris Agreement and accompanying the proposal for a Council Decision on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, of the Paris agreement adopted under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

• Primary Source

EUR-Lex: COM(2016)62: Follow the progress of this proposal through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2016:062:FIN

ESO: Background Information: Climate Action: Europe readies next steps to implement the Paris Agreement http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-climate-action-europe-readies-next-steps-to-implement-the-paris-agreement/

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