"The UN on Monday lowered expectations for clinching a legally binding agreement at a UN climate change summit in Copenhagen in December, saying it might take longer to secure a final deal.... UN Climate Change Support Team Director Janos Pasztor made clear that the secretary-general was planning for 'post-Copenhagen' talks....'Climate change is not going to be resolved in Copenhagen in the next few weeks,' Pasztor said. 'We always knew that. It's a long-term problem that will be with us for many years, if not decades, to come. So Copenhagen has to be a milestone.'..." [Reuters/Factiva]

AP adds that "...Pasztor stressed that there is still a final negotiating session in Barcelona, Spain, from November 2-6 that will be followed by two more weeks of work in Copenhagen. The UN secretary-general is in close contact with the Danish prime minister and might go to the meeting of Asian and Pacific leaders in Singapore on November 14-15 to keep pressing for a global accord in Copenhagen, Pasztor said...." [Associated Press/Factiva]