What role did the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change play in creating the Paris Agreement?

The 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) served as the foundational legal and institutional framework for international climate policy, directly facilitating the creation of the Paris Agreement.

The UNFCCC established the long-term objective of stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. It also introduced the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities," which acknowledges that while all nations must act, industrialized countries have a greater obligation to lead in emission reductions.1

The Paris Agreement functioned as the successor to the Kyoto Protocol, which was the first major treaty associated with the UNFCCC. Negotiations for the Paris Agreement were conducted through the UNFCCC's Conference of the Parties (COP) process, specifically building on commitments made at meetings in Bali, Durban, and Doha. Furthermore, the Paris Agreement explicitly references the UNFCCC by noting that developed countries should provide financial resources to developing nations in continuation of their existing obligations under the Convention.123