About
The UNFCCC is a framework convention that primarily sets out objectives and principles, whereas the more specific targets and obligations will follow from protocols and agreements building upon the UNFCCC. Annually, the parties to the convention arrange a climate conference to assess progress in dealing with climate change. These conferences have resulted in both the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement.
Who does it impact?
The UNFCCC is an international agreement that is only binding on the parties to it, which are states and the EU. However, to reach the goal of reducing and stabilising greenhouse gas emissions, the participating parties will have to implement measures, for instance through legislation, which will also have an impact on e.g. businesses and organisations that operate in that state.
Status: In force
The UNFCCC entered into force on 21 March 1994 when a sufficient number of states had ratified the agreement.
Relation to other initiatives and regulations
- The convention is a United Nations initiative.
- Furthermore, the well-known annual climate conferences are in reality meetings between the parties to the UNFCCC, following up the convention. Important global agreements on climate change, including the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement, are building upon and initiated by the parties to the UNFCCC.
- The UNFCCC is one of three "Rio Conventions", together with the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the Convention to Combat Desertification, which opened for signatures at the climate conference "Rio Earth Summit" in 1992.
Participants
The UNFCCC has 198 parties, which includes 197 nations and the European Union.
Thommessen's comments
It is important to have knowledge of the UNFCCC due to its impact on other international agreements and initiatives, such as the Paris Agreement. The annual climate conference arranged by the parties to the UNFCCC has a very high status and gets massive attention worldwide. The last conference (COP30) was arranged in Belém, Brazil, from 10-21 November 2025.