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ByKarlRitterand Angela Charlton The Associated Press LE BOURGET, FRANCE The United Nations secretary- general called for a clean energy revolution to avoid a "climate catastrophe" as talks on a global warm- ing pact entered their final week Monday with crunch issues on money and bur- den-sharing yet to be re- solved. One of them, however, ap- peared to be untangling as the European Union soft- eneditsinsistencethatcoun- tries' targets to limit carbon pollution need to be legally binding, something U.S. ne- gotiators reject because of opposition in the Republi- can-controlled Congress. "We need the United States on board and we have to find a solution," EU Climate Commissioner Miguel Arias Canete told reporters on the sidelines of the conference. "We un- derstand the concerns they have because of the politi- cal situation they have in the Congress." Many Republicans question whether climate change is happening and oppose emissions limits out of concern that it would hurt U.S. industry and jobs. Upon arrival in France, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said that even with- out binding targets the deal could change the way world businessthinksaboutenergy. "I have absolute confi- dence in the ability of capi- tal to move where the signal of the marketplace says 'go' after Paris," he said. Foreign and environment ministers joined the talks after lower-level negotia- tors who met last week de- livered a draft agreement with multiple options left open. Warning that "the clock is ticking toward climate catastrophe," U.N. Secre- tary-General Ban Ki-moon told ministers the world ex- pects more from them than "half-measures." "Your work here this week can help eradicate poverty, spark a clean en- ergy revolution and pro- vide jobs, opportunities and hope for tomorrow," he said. Touching on the sensi- tive issue of who should do what, Ban said wealthy na- tions must agree to lead, while "developing countries need to assume increasing responsibility in line with their capabilities." The Paris conference is the 21st time world gov- ernments have met to seek a joint solution to climate change — and is aiming at the most ambitious, long- lasting accord yet. The talks are focused on reducing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, primar- ily by shifting from oil, coal and gas to cleaner sources of energy. Fossil fuels still meet about 80 percent of the world's energy demand, though the share of re- newable energy includ- ing hydro, solar and wind power is growing, partic- ularly in electricity gener- ation. India and other major de- veloping countries insist on their right to use some fossil fuels to advance their econ- omies — just like Western nations have done since the Industrial Revolution. They argue the West therefore is historically responsible for raising levels of carbon di- oxide in the atmosphere. The Paris agreement would be the first to ask all countries to rein in their emissions; earlier pacts only required wealthy na- tions to do so. How to de- fine countries' evolving re- sponsibilities as their econ- omies grow is the biggest challenge in the Paris talks. Another major issue is helping the poorest and most vulnerable countries cope with dangerous warm- ing effects, from rising seas to intensifying droughts and heat waves. The U.S. and other developed coun- tries say it's time that the most advanced developing countries pitch in. Many of them, including China, have done so but they want any Paris deal to clearly state that their con- tributions would be volun- tary, rather than something that should be expected of them. China, the world's biggest carbon polluter, has domes- tic reasons to act. On Mon- day, Beijing issued its first ever red alert for smog, urg- ing schools to close and in- voking restrictions on fac- tories and traffic. While smog is a differ- ent environmental prob- lem, much of it is blamed on coal-fired power plants and vehicle emissions, which also are key sources of car- bon emissions. Meanwhile, a surprising new study suggested global carbon dioxide emissions may be dropping ever so slightly this year. The unexpected dip could either be a temporary blip or true hope that the world is about to turn the corner on carbon pollution as climate talks continue in Paris, said the authors of a study published Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change. CONFERENCE Kerry joins Paris talks as UN warns of climate doom MANDELNGAN—POOLPHOTOVIAAP US Secretary of State John Kerry, right, gestures as he speaks, flanked by Mashable science editor Andrew Freedman, at the Mashable/UN Foundation "Earth to Paris" summit at Le Petit Palais in Paris, on Monday. By Zeina Karam and Bassem Mroue The Associated Press BEIRUT Syria on Monday accused the U.S.-led coali- tion of bombing an army camp in the eastern part of the country, killing three Syrian soldiers and wound- ing 13, but a senior U.S. mil- itary official said the Penta- gon is "certain" the strike was from a Russian war- plane. The dispute over the deadly airstrike under- scored the increasingly cha- otic skies over Syria as var- ious powers hit targets in the war-ravaged country. The U.S.-led alliance be- gan its airstrikes in Syria in September 2014, while Russia's air campaign be- gan a year later. In a letter to the United Nations, the government in Damascus said four aircraft from the coalition targeted the army camp in the east- ern city of Deir el-Zour on Sunday night. In addition to the casualties among the troops, it said the attack de- stroyed armored and other vehicles, and a weapons and ammunition depot. "This hampers efforts to combat terrorism and proves once again that this coalition lacks seriousness and credibility to effectively fight terrorism," according to the letter, which was pub- lished in Syrian state me- dia. The government re- fers to all those fighting to overthrow President Bashar Assad as "terrorists." It was the first time Syria has accused the U.S.-led co- alition of hitting its troops. The U.S. denied the claim, saying four alliance airstrikes in the eastern province of Deir el-Zour all hit oil wells about 34 miles southeast of Ayyash. "We did not strike any ve- hicles or personnel targets in this area. We have no in- dication any Syrian soldiers were even near our strikes," the coalition statement said, adding that it takes allega- tions of potential collateral damage seriously and inves- tigates them. Moreover, a U.S. mili- tary official said Washing- ton was "certain" it was a Russian airstrike that hit the camp. The official spoke on condition of anonymity and was unable to discuss the matter publicly. There was no immediate comment from Russian De- fense Ministry. The Britain-based Syr- ian Observatory for Hu- man Rights, which relies on activists in Syria, also reported the airstrikes and a similar death toll. The Ob- servatory said the strikes were "believed" to have been carried out by the coalition. The planes hit the camp known as Sa'iqa, the Ob- servatory said, though it gave a slightly different ac- count, saying the camp is near the village of Ayyash in the western countryside of Deir el-Zour. A Facebook page used by Islamic State militants to post news said several co- alition warplanes flew over IS positions about 8:30 p.m. Sunday, then headed to- ward areas controlled by the Syrian government and struck an arms depot in the village of Ayyash, west of Deir el-Zour. The city of Deir el-Zour is mainly held by the Islamic State group, but the Syrian government maintains a presence in some parts of it. A U.S.-led coalition has been striking at IS targets in Syria for more than a year, and France and Brit- ain recently began their own airstrikes. Russia is also carrying out airstrikes, in coordination with the Damascus government. The Obama administra- tion has repeatedly called on Assad to step down. It has refrained from target- ing his forces, fearful of be- ing dragged deeper into the increasingly complex civil war. Russia began its cam- paign Sept.30,sayingits air- strikes are meant to weaken IS and other "terrorists" in Syria. Syrian troops backed by the Russian bombings have captured areas from IS in recent weeks. DISPUTE Syria: 3 troops at army camp killed by US-led airstrikes; US blames Russia By Joshua Goodman and Hannah Dreier The Associated Press CARACAS,VENEZUELA Ven- ezuela's opposition, still re- joicing from its shock tri- umph in legislative elec- tions, is now waiting anxiously for the final tally to see whether it secured a two-thirds supermajor- ity that could dramatically wrest power from Presi- dent Nicolas Maduro after 17 years of socialist rule. The Democratic Unity opposition alliance de- clared Monday that it won the minimum number of seats needed to initiate a process to remove Maduro. But despite the efficiency and transparency prom- ised by the country's elec- tronic voting system, the National Electoral Council has yet to announce the re- sults of 22 undecided races almost a full day after polls closed. The opposition coalition won at least 99 seats in the incoming 167-seat legisla- ture, electoral authorities announced after midnight Sunday, setting off a ca- cophony of car honks and fireworks in the capital's wealthier eastern neighbor- hoods. The ruling Socialist party and its allies won 46 seats. The opposition coali- tion needs 13 of the 22 un- decided races to give it the supermajority needed to sack Supreme Court jus- tices, initiate a referendum to revoke Maduro's man- date and even convoke an assembly to rewrite Hugo Chavez's 1999 constitution. Even if the opposition falls short, the landslide could unleash intense po- litical battles. Since the late Chavez swept into power, the opposition has never held a branch of govern- ment. Both sides are more ac- customed to hurling insults than negotiating across the country's vast political di- vide, and a protracted power struggle could rip apart an economic and so- cial fabric already in tat- ters. Maduro urged his sup- porters to accept Sunday's results, even as he recalled the long history of US- supported coups in Latin America and blamed the "circumstantial" loss on a right-wing "counterrevo- lution" trying to sabotage Venezuela's oil-dependent economy and destabilize the government. "I can say today that the economic war has tri- umphed," said Maduro, who was surrounded by top so- cialist leaders in the presi- dential palace as he mostly pulled phrases from the stump speech he had been delivering before the elec- tion. Hardliners in the oppo- sition seemed similarly en- trenched, preferring to talk about ending Maduro's rule before his term ends in 2019 rather than resolving Vene- zuela's triple-digit inflation, plunging currency and the widespread shortages ex- pected to worsen in Janu- ary as businesses close for the summer vacation. VENEZUELA ELECTIONS Opposition wins Congress, aims for supermajority GaylaEckels: (530) 737-5044 geckels@redbluffdailynews.com Suzy Noble: (530) 737-5056 snoble@redbluffdailynews.com GoMultimediathisChristmasSeason! Flights of Fancy AvailableNovember2throughJanuary10 6 column inch size ads or larger Pub lish 4 times wi thin 7 da ys , get the 5th ru n FREE! Only $5.95 per column inch Even lower rates when you add online display! Add an Online Display Ad All sizes - click through to your own website! 10,000 online imp ressions with in tw o w eek Hosted Run of Site on www .redb luffda il yne ws.com $75.00 That's 75 cents per hundred guaranteed online views! We'll lower your print Flight rate to$5.50 per column inch! 15,000 online impressions within two week Hosted Run of Site on www.redbluffdailynews.com $100.00 That's 67 cents per hundred guaranteed online views! We'll lower your print Flight rate to $5.25 per column inch! 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