COP30 host Brazil has distanced itself from the most ambitious proposals at UN talks on ending plastic pollution held in Geneva this week, including a ban on some plastic products, which diplomats and activists suggest could harm trust in the country’s climate aims.

Eleven diplomats from different regions told Climate Home that Brazil’s positions have become more aligned with major oil producers during the current round of negotiations on a new global plastics pact.

While the Latin American country has not backed plans to curb the soaring production of plastics that is feeding pollution, it previously supported a narrower proposal to ban certain problematic products, such as single-use plastics. It has now backtracked on this stance while linking initiatives such as on product design to the provision of funding.

Countries are negotiating this week a new global treaty to reduce pollution from plastics, with talks reaching a stalemate after oil-producing nations pushed back on any measures to control production in favour of recycling approaches. 

A draft text issued by the talks’ chair on Wednesday afternoon did not include a reference to curbing production – and was rejected by many countries that regard this as a red line.

Speaking at a plenary to discuss the draft proposal, lead Brazilian negotiator Maria Angélica Ikeda said her country wants a treaty that is “robust and significant” with “balanced” measures on production and consumption of plastics, adding it would need to include financial aid.

“We had previously said in INC sessions to all our colleagues that science tells us that we need to focus on plastics not only as waste but as products per se. Definitely a balanced approach is needed,” said Ikeda. It was not clear whether that includes any curbs on production. 

Juan Carlos Monterrey, Panama’s head of delegation, said before the plenary session that Brazil’s stance on a new global plastics pact in Geneva will influence expectations of the UN climate summit host. 

“What Brazil does here — the ambition it pushes — will be read across the world as a preview of what will be on the table at COP30 in Belém,” he said.

Nearly all plastic is made using plant-heating fossil fuels and, as production is projected to double or triple in the next 25 years, that spells trouble for efforts to limit global warming and stem the flood of plastic waste clogging up the Earth’s oceans and littering its land.

Unclear stance or low ambition?

At the end of last year in Korea, Brazil backed a ban on certain types of plastics proposed by Mexico and Switzerland, which was also supported by more than 100 nations. This has not been the case in Geneva. 

Here, Brazil is co-facilitating — alongside Germany — a contact group of negotiators on the most contentious articles of the deal, including issues such as measures to reduce the production of virgin plastic, chemical additives, and broader production-related measures.

In written statements, the Brazilian Foreign Ministry said it is seeking to facilitate polarised talks between those who believe plastic pollution should be addressed through waste management and those who argue for direct limits on plastic production. “In general, the latter focus excessively on the production phase,” the note emphasised.

Diplomats interviewed by Climate Home said the COP30 host nation has not been clear about its positions, sometimes expressing different opinions from one day to the next — creating confusion about the direction the country wants the negotiations to take.

A delegate from an African country told CHN that Brazil’s behaviour does not appear to signal its commitment to a strong deal to end plastic pollution, but rather to a reduced scope focused on waste management — a position similar to the stance of oil majors grouped in the Like-Minded Countries (LMC) bloc.

According to three LMC members, the South American country’s recent positions align with theirs. One noted that big oil-producing countries do not need to formally join the LMC to share their view, and added that this has been the case with Brazil.

Brazil calls for funds and voluntary action

The Brazilian delegation has submitted three proposals that do not include curbing production — including guidelines for the manufacturing of plastic products — and has conditioned all actions on the availability of funding. 

In a written statement sent to Climate Home, Brazil’s Foreign Ministry said there is “a clear lack of willingness by many developed countries to support developing nations”, bo