Could global climate deal deliver three treaties?

The Kyoto Protocol could be replaced or extended through three separate international treaties, according to Mexico's top climate change diplomat.

Speaking to news agency Reuters earlier today on the sidelines of the latest round of UN climate change talks in Bonn, Luis Alfonso de Alba said officials could attempt to break the various deadlocks marring the international negotiations by drafting a number of separate treaties at this year's main UN climate change summit in Cancun.

"We are not just talking about one single legally binding instrument but a set of them," he said. "One instrument will cover (parties to the) Kyoto Protocol but it is also possible to have something for the US and a third one for developing countries."

Momentum is building around proposals for a number of different treaties as diplomats look to resolve long-running arguments about how best to replace or extend the Kyoto Agreement.

Many industrialised countries, including the US and the EU, have signalled that they would like to scrap the Kyoto Protocol and replace it with a new treaty that imposes some form of emissions targets on emerging economies such as China and India.

However, developing countries have insisted that the Kyoto Protocol remain in place, amid fears that any new agreement could water down obligations for rich countries while placing an unfair burden on poorer countries.

The situation is further complicated by the fact that the US has never ratified the Kyoto Treaty and may require its own separate treaty in order to codify its emission reduction commitments.

Reuters also reported that EU officials hinted earlier this week that they would consider supporting plans for a number of different treaties in an attempt to end the standoff between industrialised and developing countries.

The news came as it emerged that the latest round of talks is unlikely to deliver a new negotiating text as planned.

There had been hopes that a new document would be released tomorrow, but efforts to slim down the text have reportedly been hampered as more countries have sought to add amendments.

There is only one more week of formal negotiations ahead of the Cancun summit in November, with diplomats scheduled to gather at the final meeting in China in October.