Roadmap launched to restart deadlocked UN plastics treaty talks

Diplomats will hold a series of informal meetings this year to revive stalled talks over a global treaty to curb plastic pollution, before aiming to reconvene for the next round of official negotiations at the end of 2026 or early 2027.

“Editing: Helen Popper Diplomats will hold a series of informal meetings this year in a bid to revive stalled talks over a global treaty to curb plastic pollution, before aiming to reconvene for the next round of official negotiations at the end of 2026 or early 2027”

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The chair of the talks, Chilean ambassador Julio Cordano, released a roadmap on Monday to inject momentum after negotiations collapsed at a chaotic session in Geneva last August.

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Cordano wrote in a letter that countries would meet in Nairobi from June 30 to July 3 for informal discussions to review all components of the negotiations, including thorny issues such as efforts to limit soaring plastic production.

The gathering should result in drafting a new document laying the foundations of a future treaty text with options on elements with divergent views, but no surprises such as new ideas or compromise proposals.

This plan aims to address the fact that countries left Geneva without a draft text to work on — something Cordano called a significant limitation in his letter.

The meeting in Nairobi will follow a series of virtual consultations every four to six weeks, where heads of country delegations will exchange views on specific topics.

A second in-person meeting aimed at finding solutions might take place in early October, depending on the availability of funding.

Cordano said the roadmap should offer a predictable pathway in the lead-up to the next formal negotiating session, which is expected to take place over 10 days at the end of 2026 or early 2027.

A host country has yet to be selected, but Climate Home News understands that Brazil, Azerbaijan or Kenya — the home of the UN Environment Programme — have been put forward as options.

Countries have twice failed to agree on a global plastics treaty at what were meant to be final rounds of negotiations in December 2024 and August 2025.

A majority, including most European, Latin American, African and Pacific island nations, wants to limit the manufacturing of plastic to sustainable levels.

But large fossil fuel and petrochemical producers, led by Saudi Arabia, the United States, Russia and India, say the treaty should only focus on managing plastic waste.

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As nearly all plastic is made from planet-heating oil, gas and coal, the sector’s trajectory will have a significant impact on global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

After an eight-month hiatus, informal discussions restarted in early March at an informal meeting of about 20 countries hosted by Japan.

“Editing: Helen Popper Diplomats will hold a series of informal meetings this year in a bid to revive stalled talks over a global treaty to curb plastic pollution, before aiming to reconvene for the next round of official negotiations at the end of 2026 or early 2027”

Climate Home News

A participant told Climate Home News that the gathering had been helpful to test ideas, but progress remained challenging, with national stances largely unchanged.

The source added that countries would need to achieve a significant shift in positions in the coming months to make reconvening formal negotiations worthwhile.

Greenpeace USA's Jacob Kean-Hammerson said the roadmap offers an opportunity for countries to defend and protect the most critical provisions on the table.

He said that the document must include and revisit proposals backed by a large number of countries, especially on plastic production, that have previously been disregarded.

These measures are essential to addressing the crisis at its source and must be reinstated as a key part of the negotiations.