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The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) represents the first step of international action to combat climate change. The commitments under the Convention, however, have proved to be far too inadequate to reach the objectives of stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations. Accordingly, in 1995, immediately after the UNFCCC entered into force, parties to the UNFCCC launched a new round of negotiations to make more concrete action. After three difficult years of negotiations, the parties adopted the Kyoto Protocol
This article provides an overview of the compliance approaches employed by the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol and outlines the ideas and proposals that emerged from the negotiations among parties to develop the Protocol’s compliance system. These ideas may provide useful lessons for negotiators in other environmental treaty regimes. The article contains
four parts. The first part describes the general compliance theory reflected in most multilateral environ-
mental agreements (MEAs). This theory is different from the traditional means States have used to deal with non-compliance in other areas of international relations. The UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol are good examples to illustrate this compliance theory. The second and third parts describe the various means used by the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol to promote implementation and compliance. The final part discusses the development of the procedures and mechanisms on compliance under the Kyoto Protocol.