Although governments have disagreements on emission reduction and transparency, they still can identify the direction on issues in line with guidance from the UNFCCC, the Kyoto Protocol and the Bali Road Map, China's top climate negotiator Xie Zhenhua said Monday in Tianjin, China.

"Progress has been made at each negotiation conference over the past 20 years," said Xie, at a press conference Monday during the new round UN climate talks held in Tianjin, "China just hopes to contribute positively to this long-term negotiation as the host."

He said negotiations are close to reaching a consensus in the coming Cancun climate change conference in aspects of fast and long-term financing, technology transfer mechanisms and forest protection.

Artur Runge-Metzger, the delegate of European Commission, said at the EU's press conference Monday that "if Cancun does not produce a solid outcome that takes the fight against climate change forward, then I think it risks becoming irrelevant in the eyes of the world."

Xie responded by stating that progress has been made during the past three negotiations, and this year in Bonn, Germany, especially, where the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action (AWG-LCA) party-driven text was drafted and will serve as the foundation for the Cancun climate negotiations.

The 70-page AWG-LCA text will be read line by line during the Tianjin talks.

"We hope to rule out more differences and leave fewer square brackets (options) in this draft to reach greater consensus," Xie said.

Christiana Figueres, the UN's chief climate change negotiator, said developed nations have raised $28 billion this year of the total 30 billion set for poorer nations by 2012.

"Now there are two opinions about the climate-change negotiations, one is to follow the legal procedure offered by United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the other one is to have small-scale meetings separately," Xie said.

He said China wouldn't exclude the second option if the Tianjin talks have a low efficiency and don't reach an agreement, and hopes to call for a ministerial conference to continue the preparation for the coming Cancun climate summit.

It's the first time that China has hosted a UN climate change conference.

Xie said China will?play a positive role in tackling climate change and holding these talks also contributes in an effective and legal way.

China volunteered to host the Tianjin meeting, which the government hopes demonstrates its determination to actively promote climate negotiations and bring further progress, said Stanley So, a media officer from the international NGO Oxfam Hong Kong.

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