Big drama, trickling progress in Copenhagen

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Something is melodramatic in Denmark.

For what felt like the umpteenth time since the international climate summit began here last week, a floor protest briefly shut down the negotiations today -- at least in public. This time, it was a group of African nations, led by Sudan, that lodged a procedural protest over fears that the talks will result in an abandonment of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol.

International media reacted breathlessly, as they did during similar temporary shut-downs last week, chronicling the public negotiating roller-coaster with all the intrigue of Shakespeare himself.

Meanwhile, delegates continued to talk behind the scenes. U.S. officials downplayed the effect on the conference’s ultimate goal, an agreement that would pave the way to a new global warming treaty.

And by early evening, environmentalists who work closely with the negotiators reported the situation resolved and that diplomats were preparing for what could be an overnight bargaining session, attempting to hammer out compromises in key areas of the agreement.

With heads of state set to start arriving in the next day or two, now is when the real work ramps up, negotiating veterans say.

‘You know it’s getting serious when they start working in the dark,’ said David Doniger, clean air policy director for the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Lucky for them, the winter sun sets here before 4 p.m.

-- Jim Tankersley in Copenhagen, Denmark