Informal climate talks resume in Copenhagen

Delegates from nearly 200 countries were holding a new round of informal talks Tuesday ahead of the official launch of high-level climate change negotiations in Copenhagen, DPA reported.

Heads of state and government are then expected to start trickling in, with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown among the first due to arrive in Copenhagen, later on Tuesday.

Tuesday was set to mark a turning point in the 12-day conference with the official launch of high-level discussions by environment ministers.

The president of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, Connie Hedegaard, launched unofficial consultations Monday after irate African delegates forced a suspension in the negotiations amid a row between rich and poor countries over how to slow global warming. Participants said informal talks had continued overnight.

Poorer countries are demanding an extension of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, which introduced legally-binding emission cuts for the world's richest nations.

The United States and other major developing economies, such as China, are not part of Kyoto, and the Danish presidency has come under fire for allegedly not paying enough attention to the concerns of countries most vulnerable to the effects of global warming.

Developed nations have in turn accused developing nations of time-wasting.

"The clock is definitely ticking, like a big hourglass that's running down right now, so any time that's lost, it is unhelpful," said Todd Stern, head of the US delegation in Copenhagen.

The conference, which seeks to keep global warming in check, is due to end on Friday.