UNFCCC executive secretary Christiana Figueres tells RTCC she’s confident that the forthcoming COP18 climate talks in Doha will be a success and see the adoption of a Kyoto Protocol second commitment period.

Figueres called on China’s new leader Xi Jinping to ensure the country remains committed to a low-carbon future and engaged in the next round of negotiations later this month.

And she also expressed a hope that the climate would become a priority for US President Barack Obama in his second term of office.

Other topics of discussion include EU ambitions for COP18, the Kyoto Protocol extension, climate finance, future of the Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention (AWG-LCA) and what ‘confidence building’ measures we can expect in the first week of the summit.