A global binding agreement on fossil-fuel plastics is on standby, for now.

In March 2022, an important milestone was reached in the fight against the improper management of fossil-based plastics. The UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-5.2) adopted a resolution to draft an international binding agreement on plastic pollution, both terrestrial and marine.

As a matter of fact, plastic pollution is a global environmental crisis caused by the accumulation of plastic material in the environment, with serious impacts on ecosystems, wildlife, human health and economies.

At that time, the core mission was to fix a comprehensive approach regarding the whole life cycle in order to prevent the unregulated dispersion of this non-biodegradable nor compostable material in the environment. In fact, plastic products, often disposable, are prone to fragment into microplastics that contaminate soil, water and air, persisting for centuries and entering the living-being food chain.

The second part of the fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee -(INC 5.2) - held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva (Switzerland) from the 5th to the 15th August 2025, was expected to be crucial in achieving the desired objective. However, efforts did not reach the desired outcome as a result of the clear opposition of many oil-producing governments and related partners. The urgent debate, among delegates coming from more than 170 Countries, risked producing an unsatisfactory and not-suffienctly ambitious text. H.E. Luis Vayas Valdivieso, Ecuador's Ambassador and Chair of the meeting, as well as Juan Carlos Monterrey Gómez, leading climate policy expert from Panama, and Jessika Rosswall, EU Environment Commissioner, aligned themselves on this position.

But not all is doom and gloom, quite the opposite. Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the UN Environment Program - UNEP - after taking note of the temporary transit moment despite ten days of close meetings, confirmed the strong commitment of the United Nations and Member Countries to reach a shared decision in short time.

Photo >> The headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva © Wix for MonacoEcoArt

The recent meeting in Geneva demonstrated how it is necessary to address the "plastic litter" issue with a holistic mind. Only through efficient coordination among policy makers, the world of science, civil society, indigenous communities and new generations, we will be able to build up a stable foundation for a decent interstate agreement. This Global Village coming Together, as defined by the UNEP Executive Director, could help convincing the currently most skeptical States to agree on a more effective text.

Oil-producing Countries like Saudi Arabia, Iran and Kuwait, together with United States, Russia and China, have been holding a similar opposition to any further restriction to fossil-based plastic production for about two and a half years. These State Members, the so called "like-minded group", are convinced that the agreement should deal exclusively with the end-of-life plastic management. According to their point of view, investing in plastic recycling infrastructure and waste disposal would solve the problem of pollution without limiting the world's production of this particularly ductile and inexpensive material, directly related to oil processing.

On the other side, the Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty, which gathers some of the largest multinationals like Walmart, Tetra Pak and Unilever, claimed that the proposal agreement is not enough consistent in terms of legal regulation and effectiveness to really solve the problem of global plastic pollution.

Last but not least, Environmental Groups like Greenpeace, criticised the petrochemical lobbies' conviction to interfere in preventing a substantial agreement able to hit the mark and stop the growing plastic crisis.

The most recent fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee undoubtedly highlighted strong divisions on this delicate issue. Promoters of a plastic-free sustainable future have been greatly disappointed by this inconclusive result. Nevertheless, the debate is still open and anything can happen in the coming months. And given the vital topic, parties need to focus on the quality of the result. The INC 5.2 concluding statement by Ana Rocha, Director of Global Plastics Policy, part of GAIA environmental group, is particularly significant in this regard: "no treaty is better than a bad treaty". ***

✒️ Maurice Abbati

• Strategic Communication Specialist, Editor in Chief, Journalist, Executive.

• Lecturer and Author in English in the field of Environmental Communication to foster Circular and Blue Economy.