Global plastic treaty negotiations deadlock: from Busan to Geneva, an unfinished marathon

Plastic has long permeated every corner of the Earth—from the Mariana Trench to the summit of Mount Everest, from Arctic sea ice to human blood. Scientific evidence continues to accumulate, public anxiety keeps rising, yet the response of global governance remains a difficult journey.

In March 2022, the fifth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly adopted a historic resolution to launch negotiations on a legally binding global plastics treaty. It is one of the most ambitious attempts in global environmental governance since the Paris Agreement. However, four years on, the negotiations are still far from complete.

From Fragmentation to Integration: A Belated Consensus

Plastic pollution is not a new problem. Over the past few decades, the international community has responded in a fragmented manner: the United Nations Environment Assembly has focused on marine litter and microplastics, the Basel Convention has addressed the transboundary movement of hazardous waste, and the World Trade Organization has discussed the sustainability of the plastics trade. These efforts each have their own emphases, but they lack systematic coherence and binding force. Most measures are voluntary and concentrated on downstream waste management, doing almost nothing about upstream production and consumption.

It was precisely this structural deficiency that drove the rise of the "full lifecycle" concept. Academia, civil society, and forward-thinking companies began to call for action: if plastic production and use cannot be controlled at the source, simply cleaning up marine litter is only treating the symptoms, not the root cause. This consensus ultimately crystallized in the March 2022 resolution—175 countries agreed to establish an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee, with the goal of completing an international treaty covering the entire lifecycle of plastics by the end of 2024.

Negotiation Marathon: From Uruguay to Kenya, Then to South Korea and Switzerland

In November 2022, the first round of negotiations opened in Punta del Este, Uruguay. Since then, negotiations have been held in Paris, France; Nairobi, Kenya; Ottawa, Canada; and Busan, South Korea. Each round of meetings has been accompanied by technical discussions and political maneuvering, but a gap has always remained to the final text.

In December 2024, the Busan meeting was originally expected to be the final battle to close the negotiations. But all parties failed to reach consensus. In August 2025, negotiations resumed in Geneva, still ending without results. In February 2026, Geneva again became the focus—the negotiating committee elected Chilean Ambassador Julio Cordano as the new chair, marking a new phase in the negotiations.

The marathon-like process itself is a symptom of the complexity of global governance. The plastics economic chain involves huge industries such as fossil fuels, chemicals, consumer goods, and recycling, each with vested interests. There are serious differences in positions between developed and developing countries, between oil-producing and consuming countries, and between industry and environmental organizations. Core issues such as production limits, financial mechanisms, and technology transfer remain hot potatoes to this day.

Multi-Stakeholder Momentum: The High Ambition Coalition and Business TransformationDespite the slow pace of negotiations, the forces driving the treaty have also been growing. In August 2022, Rwanda and Norway launched the "High Ambition Coalition," which clearly set out three strategic goals: to limit plastic production and consumption to sustainable levels, to establish a circular economy for plastics that protects the environment and human health, and to achieve sound management of plastic waste. The coalition quickly gained support from multiple countries, becoming a key driving force in the negotiations.

At the same time, private sector participation is also quite telling. The "Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty," convened by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the World Wildlife Fund, brings together numerous businesses and financial institutions that publicly support an ambitious and legally binding treaty. This contrasts with the stereotype that businesses usually resist environmental regulation — partly because brands have realized the reputational damage of plastic pollution and the new opportunities presented by circular economy business models.

Pressure from civil society is also sustained. Environmental organizations continue to expose the severity of plastic pollution and call on governments not to concede to industry lobbying. As demonstrated by the "Champions of Change" initiative, joint pledges and actions from all sectors of society seek to consolidate political will before the final stretch.