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  Bush and the Climate: Saving the World at the 11th Hour

Bush and the Climate Saving the World at the 11th Hour

By Carsten Volkery and Severin Weiland in Berlin

Part 2: 'Still not an Easy Issue'

But when it comes to concrete results, the Germans are more hesitant. "Please don't ask me about what will ultimately be announced there," the advisor said. "This is still not an easy issue." The United States continues to reject setting concrete goals for reducing CO2 emissions.

Like the guests from Washington, German officials were also quick to point out the chancellor's achievements, noting that there has been a "lot of movement" on climate change at the international level, due in large part to Merkel's "resolute approach."

Climate change, at least in the public perception, is currently overshadowing all other topics on the G-8 summit's agenda -- including the issue of hedge funds, improved protection for intellectual property, the development of the global economy, growing foreign currency reserves in countries like China and Japan, investment protectionism, the situation in Africa and the social questions of globalization. Even the German government concedes that the topic of climate change is "gaining more attention than we had expected," and that it is currently "somewhat exaggerated."

The so-called "sherpas" -- the chief negotiators at the G-8 -- will continue to meet right up until the start of the summit on Wednesday evening in Heiligendamm. As with any negotiation, this one also includes its share of "square brackets" that can "still be opened and closed" by then, officials in Berlin said. Climate protection, they added, constitutes one of the "most difficult sets of issues -- but chances are still good."

Most of the German media interpreted Bush's recent announcement of a proposal to invite the world's 15 biggest polluters to attend a separate conference as an attack on Merkel's climate policy. But officials within the German government have reacted diplomatically to Bush's proposal and are viewing it as part of a continuing process of negotiations, such as the Bali conference slated for this fall. Participants in the UN-led event are expected to negotiate a follow-up agreement to the Kyoto climate protection protocol beyond 2012. Eager to put a positive spin on things, the German officials in Berlin Tuesday portrayed Bush's 15-country meeting "as a preliminary step along the road to Bali."

If there is one guiding principle to communications policy, it is this: Repeat the message until every last person has understood it. The German officials followed this principle Tuesday when they reemphasized what had already been said by officials at several levels and even by Merkel herself: It is "essential" to the chancellor that anything that makes sense in terms of climate protection should "ultimately be incorporated into the UN process."

Leading up to the summit, Merkel had announced her stated goals that CO2 emissions be cut in half by 2050 and that global warming be limited to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). But will the chancellor stick to her guns? Government officials in Berlin conceded Tuesday that this is "not the easiest of issues," and that "there are various goals" to be reached. Officials chose to remain silent on the question of whether this issue will ultimately remain unresolved in Heiligendamm.

Berlin is still placing its bets on last-minute diplomacy. Before the summit officially begins on Wednesday evening, Merkel will meet one-on-one with Bush, Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi.

Given all these last-minute preparations and meetings, one Merkel advisor was only half-joking when he said Tuesday: "There's still plenty of time left before the summit."

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