Negotiations at the fifth meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution (INC-5) in Busan ended with delegations failing to reach a deal and agreeing to resume talks next year.

The INC-5, which started based on a resolution passed during the UN Environment Assembly meeting in March 2022, started Monday in Busan, with hopes of reaching an agreement to end plastic pollution by 2040.

The meeting concluded late Sunday without a deal, despite making “significant progress” toward the goal, according to the INC Chair, Luis Vayas Valdivieso.

“While it is encouraging that portions of the text have been agreed upon, we must also recognize that a few critical issues still prevent us from reaching a comprehensive agreement,” continued Valdivieso during Sunday’s plenary session.

Valdivieso concluded the plenary session, emphasizing that “additional time is needed” to effectively resolve the issues at hand. The Chair's Text submitted by Valdivieso on Sunday announced the basis of discussions for when the INC reconvenes next year.

South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul also addressed the session, saying that member states should take pride in building a foundation for “further convergence” when resuming negotiations.

“It is essential that we do not give up the shared goal of creating a legally binding instrument to tackle plastic pollution. We must build on what we have negotiated so far,” continued Cho. “We cannot afford to step backward. The progress we have made is real, and is the product of hard work, engagement and a collective commitment to finding solutions.”

During the INC-5, disagreements among countries were reportedly sharp on points such as regulations against the production of plastics or plastic polymers -- a key raw material sourced from fossil fuels to produce plastic products -- as well as measures to regulate hazardous chemicals that go into making plastics and funding mechanisms. These disagreements, raised as pending concerns from the first day of INC-5, eventually could not be resolved.

According to media reports, while China, the world’s largest plastic producer, reportedly displayed a cooperative stance during the weeklong discussions, oil-producing countries, such as Saudi Arabia and Russia, were firmly against regulating plastic production. They instead emphasized methods to manage plastic waste.

However, the Environment Ministry stated that certain progress was made in other areas, such as plastic product design, waste management and strategies to enhance the treaty’s implementation and effectiveness in the future.

Plastics are produced at a staggering rate of over 460 million metric tons annually, with more than half of such numbers being single-use products, according to the UN Environment Program. Since the 1950s, the cumulative production of plastics has been derived from fossil fuel-based chemicals, and only 9 percent of plastic waste is recycled.