The question ‘who is responsible for climate change?’ lies at the heart of the politics of negotiations related to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). In December 1988, the UN General Assembly resolution recognised climate change as a “common concern of mankind” and noted that “the largest part of the current emission of pollutants into the environment including toxic and hazardous wastes, originates in developed countries… those countries have the main responsibility for combating such pollution”. The resolution affirmed that “the responsibility for containing, reducing and eliminating global environmental damage…must be in relation to the damage caused, and must be in accordance with (the country’s) respective capabilities and responsibilities”.
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