New draft climate deal emerges as Paris talks near end

LE BOURGET, France -- French foreign minister Laurent Fabius on Thursday presented a new draft of a global climate accord that showed headway on some key issues and stalemate on others as the talks outside Paris headed into the final stretch.

The 27-page draft -- two pages shorter than a previous version -- included a long-term goal of keeping global warming "well below" 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit.

The draft also said governments would aim to peak the emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases "as soon as possible" and strive to reach "emissions neutrality" by the second half of the century.

That was weaker language than in previous drafts that included more specific emissions cuts and timeframes. Emissions neutrality wasn't defined in the text. Previous versions have included similar terms that generally are understood to mean no more emissions than the Earth can absorb naturally.

The issue appeared far from settled, however, with one negotiator from a developed country saying his delegation would "push back" on the long-term goal. He spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks were ongoing.

Fabius, who is leading the talks, told negotiators to review the draft and come back in two hours to continue the talks. The Paris conference was scheduled to end today, but the annual U.N. talks rarely finish on time.

"I think, I hope that by the end of this night, we'll have a draft of the final text," Fabius said. "We are much closer."

Diplomats from 196 governments are trying to forge a global pact in Paris to slow global warming by slashing emissions, mostly from the burning of oil, coal and gas for energy.

The biggest challenge is to define the responsibilities of wealthy nations, which have polluted the most historically, and developing economies, including China and India, where emissions are growing the fastest.

That draft suggested compromises were emerging in some sections. But the text still contained competing options on the key issue of transparency -- making sure countries follow through on their emissions targets.

That section included an option asking for different rules for rich and poor countries, which the former have said is unacceptable.