US and Canada: developing countries need to do more

Ned Helme, president of the Center for Clean Air Policy, called the deal a real breakthrough. “It’s the first time that developing countries really took the lead, showed their strength and talked about what kind of programmes they are doing on their own.” On the other hand, the US does want more commitment from the larger emitting developing countries, including fast-growing China and India. But James Connaughton, chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, was positive as well. “There is no question that we have opened a new page and are moving forward together. It is a strong commitment jointly reached by all countries to advance negotiations.”

Canada backed the US view that developing countries had not offered enough. “190 countries are represented here. 38 of them agreed to take on national binding targets today, we've just got to work on some of the other 150,” said John Baird, Canada's environment minister.

European Union: upbeat and ambitious

The EU's official take on the outcome was positive. "It was exactly what we wanted. We are indeed very pleased," said Humberto Rosa, head of the EU delegation. Other comments: "a vital step forward for the whole world” (UK's PM Gordon Brown), "an important basis for the good result” (Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany), and “a stark breakthrough. It's been a rollercoaster" (British Environment Secretary Hilary Benn). “Of course the path to a successor agreement for the Kyoto Protocol will be difficult,” Merkel added, “But I am sure the mandate from Bali will soon be shown to be groundbreaking."

Dutch Environment Minister Jacqueline Cramer stated: "It was a delicate balance and we were able to really build consensus in this room and indeed the United States was willing to give in. The G77 was willing to give in, everybody was willing to give in. We could not leave here without a Bali roadmap.”

EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas acknowledged that some of the toughest negotiations are still to come. “Now the real hard work must begin. It is essential that the agreement to be worked out over the next two years is ambitious enough to prevent global warming from reaching dangerous levels,” he said. German Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel agreed with Dimas. “It was hard work and exhausting. But the real work starts now.”

The European Parliament congratulated the Portuguese EU Presidency and the Commission for having secured “the best politically viable outcome" at Bali. Parliament was "also pleased that the attitude of the US administration has evolved over the last few years – from a reluctance to enter into negotiations to, as is now the case, specific commitments.”

UNFCCC: pleased about flexibility

The Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, Yvo de Boer is especially pleased about the fact that the road forward is ambitious, transparent and flexible. “It is ambitious because the roadmap very clearly refers to the ranges and underlying level of ambition that goes with those ranges that the IPCC had been pointing to. I think it is flexible. What you see in this document is much more similarity between how (…) developed and developing countries intend to move forward into the future," he said.

Developing Countries: moderately happy

Some observers considered China, India and other growing emitters as the 'winners' of the talks, having secured an increase in clean technology transfers without a commitment to reduce emissions in future. However, Chinese negotiators seemed only moderately satisfied. "We have the Bali roadmap. We are not entirely satisfied but the outcome is good," a senior Chinese delegate told Reuters.

Hassan Wirajuda, foreign minister of host nation Indonesia, sounded more upbeat. "Here in Bali we reached a consensus, global consensus for all countries. No single country was excluded, in a very inclusive process... we hope it will provide not only a good basis but also the momentum in the coming years." Everton Vargas, head of Brazil’s delegation, was satisfied as well. "We are very happy, we think it's a great success," he said.

The Alliance of Small Island States was less pleased. "There was no need for 12,000 people to gather here in Bali to have a watered down text, we could have done that by e-mail," Angus Friday, chair of the Alliance of Small Island states, said when talks wound up late on Friday.

Environmental groups: mainly disappointed

Environmental groups were disappointed about the lack of goals matching what scientists say is most needed to limit rising temperatures. “The Bush Administration has unscrupulously taken a monkey wrench to the level of action on climate change that the science demands,” said Gerd Leipold, Greenpeace International director.

“The US has been humbled by the overwhelming message by developing countries that they are ready to be engaged with the problem, and it's been humiliated by the world community. I've never seen such a flip-flop in an environmental treaty context ever," said Bill Hare of Greenpeace. “It clearly indicates the US is unable to face the changing reality of climate change internationally."

WWF too expressed disappointment with the outcome and the lack of a reference to absolute emission cuts, claiming the price of US participation was a deal weak on substance. "The US administration was asked to get out of the way, and in the end they bowed to pressure. The Bali roadmap leaves a seat at the table for the next US president to make a real contribution to the global fight to stop dangerous climate change,” Hans Verolme of WWF said.

Friends of the Earth Europe thought the EU woke up too late in the negotiations. “They confronted the Bush administration and stayed firm in keeping up the range of emission targets, but they should have done so much sooner and stronger.”

Scientists: replay of Rio, but also commitment

Alden Meyer, Director of Strategy and Policy for the Union of Concerned Scientists, called the Bali process an incredible drama. “The talks came to the brink of collapse. You saw it in real time. But it was a brilliant strategy to unite the world and my country, the United States, to rejoin the international community in taking on this problem.”

Sunita Narain, Director of the Centre for Science and Environment (New Delhi), sees Bali as a replay of Rio and Berlin. “At all three events exactly the same formula has played out with the Europeans going in to save the day, to get something for the world. At the end of the day, we got an extremely weak agreement. (…) I don't see the world growing up. It's obvious the US is not learning to be alive to world opinion."

Another Indian scientist, Joyashree Roy, a climate change economist at Jadhavpur University in Kolkata, India, thinks Bali is very positive news. “But this should not just be a gesture, it must involve commitments, if the United States accepts targets then it will force others to do so. India should make preparations to come up with timelines by when it can make some sort of a commitment for emissions cuts or for mitigation efforts.”