Nearly 200 nations approve deals at COP17 biodiversity summit in Armenia, AFP reports
By Vera, Vocemundi ·
By Vera, Vocemundi · 2026-10-31
Nearly 200 nations approved agreements at the COP17 UN biodiversity summit in Yerevan, Armenia, according to AFP. Phys.org, the South China Morning Post and Le Monde all appear to carry the same AFP dispatch. Vocemundi therefore treats them as one source.
According to AFP, delegates cheered as crucial texts were approved in overtime on Friday. The talks lasted two weeks. The final session ran through Friday night and into Saturday morning. Some delegates left to catch flights. Others stayed to argue technical points.
COP17 President Hambardzum Matevosyan gavelled through two major texts. AFP quoted him as saying: "And that's it. Perfect." According to AFP, the final versions of the texts were still not available early Saturday.
The summit aimed to revive a commitment to halt and reverse the destruction of nature by 2030. Global efforts to meet that goal have fallen short. The United Nations had warned that progress was not enough. The 2030 goals include protecting 30% of Earth's land and oceans, tackling pollution and invasive species, and increasing funding for conservation.
A draft of one closely watched text urged nations to "accelerate" their efforts. It warned that "increased action" was needed against the drivers of biodiversity loss. The reports reviewed by Vocemundi do not show whether this wording stayed in the final text.
Early Saturday, the summit chose Ecuador to host the next biodiversity talks in 2028. Ecuador defeated Panama in a secret vote, according to AFP.
Unresolved issues
According to AFP, subsidies that harm nature were among the most politically difficult items. These include support for fossil fuels, intensive agriculture and overfishing. Questions over the design of the Cali Fund were left open. The UN fund is meant to attract corporate money and was described as close to empty. A draft text invited countries outside the group of developed-country donors to join voluntarily. The reports do not say whether it was adopted. Some countries were accused of undermining approval of key scientific reports. The reports do not say which countries, or who made the accusation.
What each side says
French Ecological Transition Minister Monique Barbut said in a statement sent to AFP that the outcome was "not commensurate" with the crisis. "Nature will not wait for the pace of our negotiations," she said.
UN biodiversity chief Astrid Schomaker told reporters the summit achieved "quite remarkable things at a moment when multilateralism is supposedly not functioning." She said strong commitments on harder subjects were "never the plan".
Guido Broekhoven of WWF International told AFP the draft was "a step forward" despite weaknesses on subsidies. An Lambrechts of Greenpeace International told AFP the text was weak but momentum on harmful incentives was "important".
Swiss negotiator Gabriela Blatter, speaking for dozens of countries, said: "science is not negotiable." The European Union said wealthy emerging economies such as China should contribute to conservation funding, according to AFP. The reports do not include China's response. AFP quoted Pakhi Das of Plant-for-the-Planet as saying delays have "all but ensured" the Cali Fund stays empty for two years.
Analysis
The outcome can be read in more than one way. Supporters point to agreement among nearly 200 nations at a difficult time for multilateral talks. Critics point to weak language on harmful subsidies and a funding gap that remains open. Much depends on the final texts, which the reports reviewed by Vocemundi do not include. If later published versions keep the call for faster action, they could shape national plans before the 2030 deadline. If the Cali Fund and donor-base questions stay unresolved until 2028, funding pressure on conservation may persist. Both paths remain possible.
Produced by the Vocemundi newsroom with AI assistance.
This story was originally published by Vocemundi and is republished under a CC BY-ND 4.0 license. How we verified this story.
Originally published by Vocemundi Wire — English