UPDATE 11AM ET, June 8

Leaders of the G7 agreed in principle to “phase out fossil fuel use by the end of the century.” But Reuters reports they “stopped short of agreeing their own immediate binding targets.”

In a communique issued after their two-day summit in Bavaria, the G7 leaders said they backed reducing global greenhouse gas emissions at the upper end of a range of 40 to 70 percent by 2050, using 2010 as a basis. The range was recommended by the IPCC, the United Nations‘ climate-change panel.

They also backed a global target for limiting the rise in average global temperatures to two degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) compared with pre-industrial levels.

The AFP reports that “Environmental groups broadly welcomed the fact that the G7 meeting at Germany’s Elmau Castle resort had acknowledged that “the days of fossil fuels and carbon pollution are numbered”, but criticised members for being vague on the details.

“Elmau delivered,” said Greenpeace climate expert Martin Kaiser, adding that at the summit “the vision of a 100 percent renewable energy future is starting to take shape while spelling out the end of coal”.

Earlier, leaders renewed calls for a tough line over Ukraine, warning Moscow of more sanctions, but Russia said it saw “nothing new” in the G7 approach, suggesting there were “nuances” between the members.

 

MIDNIGHT, June 7

G7 leaders are meeting in a remote castle in the Bavarian Alps for a summit with a broad agenda dominated by the situation in Ukraine, the Greek economy, a possible nuclear deal with Iran as well as global terrorism, migration and climate change.

Around 20,000 police have been deployed to protect the summit from several thousand protesters who had camped on the outskirts of the nearest town to the lavish schloss that is hosting the summit.

http://twitter.com/karlpenhaul/status/606946460870053888

What’s likely to get accomplished?

Larry Elliott at The Guardian thinks the organization and its meetings are “hopeless, divided and outdated.” He writes:

There are specific instances where the G7 could – and should – be using its collective muscle but is failing to do so. The summit in Bavaria will be followed by three global summits in the second half of 2015: the first in Addis Ababa will look at financing for development; the second in New York in September will set the United Nation’s sustainable development goals for the next 15 years; the third in Paris in December will seek a legally binding deal on climate change agreed to by every nation.

The G7 should be working backwards from Paris. It should begin by asking itself what sort of cuts in carbon emissions would be needed to prevent a damaging rise in global temperatures. Countries big and small, rich and poor, will all need to play their part in meeting this target and failure in Paris will make it a lot harder to meet the UN’s sustainable development goals.

* Live summit updates via Deutsche Welle are here.

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* WORLD * Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erodgan suffered a setback in national elections on Sunday which left his ruling AK party without a parliamentary majority. Reuters reports that AKP “has been left unable to govern alone for the first time since it came to power almost 13 years ago. It faces potentially weeks of difficult coalition negotiations with reluctant opposition parties as it tries to form a stable government, and the possibility of another early election.”

There were also national midterm elections on Sunday in Mexico, accompanied by boycotts, protests and vandalism. The Washington Post reports that the elections “pose a difficult test for President Enrique Peña Nieto,” whose “popularity has flagged and his government has suffered from persistent drug gang violence and corruption scandals.”

In several states, protesters Sunday burned ballot boxes and voting materials in an attempt to disrupt the vote. In Tixtla, a town in the volatile state of Guerrero, there were reports that authorities canceled the city election after more than half of the ballot boxes were stolen. In Oaxaca, protesters also set fires in some places, and the Organization of American States suspended its observer mission because of security risks. But election officials said the vast majority of polls in the country opened without incident.

A police officer in the Dallas suburb of McKinney, TX was placed on “administrative leave” after video surfaced of a chaotic incident at a pool party on Friday evening, where the officer appeared to draw his gun among a crowd of young people.

The Dallas Morning News reported that “The video shows officers, many using profanities, seemingly only targeting black teenagers who were at the pool. The officer who was placed on leave can be seen forcing one of the teenagers, a 15-year-old girl, to the ground and pulling her hair.”

The local police department is investigating the circumstances, while McKinney’s Mayor said on Sunday he was “disturbed and concerned by the incident and actions depicted in the video.”

Here’s the original cellphone video shot by teenage witness Brandon Brooks:

(Brandon Brooks)

A leading Fifa official said that Russia and Qatar could lose their World Cup tournaments in 2018 and 2022 if evidence arose that bribes played a role in the process. Fifa compliance chief Domenico Scala said in an interview that “should evidence be present that the awarding to Qatar and Russia only came about with bought votes, then the awarding could be void.”

Meanwhile, the BBC reported that it had seen documents showing “what happened to the $10m sent from Fifa to accounts controlled by former vice-president Jack Warner.”

Fifa’s self-financed movie, United Passions, was released in the US this weekend, apparently taking just $607 at the box office. According to CNN, critics called it “unwatchable” and “cinematic excrement.”

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* SPORTS * LeBron James drove the Cleveland Cavaliers to an overtime 95-93 victory in Game Two of the NBA finals, leveling the series.

Monday is Game Three of the NHL’s Stanley Cup final, with the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Chicago Blackhawks tied at one game apiece.

Monday sees baseball’s annual First-Year Player Draft. The overall first pick will be made by the Arizona Diamondbacks. The AP reports that it’s the 50th anniversary of the first draft in 1965, when the Kansas City Athletics selected Arizona State outfielder (and future big league All-Star) Rick Monday.

Mike Oz at Yahoo Sports looks at 14 of the most intriguing players available – including a certain Mariano Rivera Jr.

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* CULTURE * Sunday night saw Broadway’s annual Tony Awards. Here’s a complete list of winners via the New York Times.