BONN, Germany — As the first glimmer of dawn appeared across the Rhine River, delegates walked out of an all-night negotiating session at this year’s global climate talks, expressing satisfaction Saturday at the progress made toward creating a comprehensive rule book for fighting global warming.
The two-week meeting in Bonn, Germany, was designed to resolve the technical details of the 2015 Paris climate agreement.
Negotiators said they had made headway on creating a formal process in which world leaders would regularly and publicly detail the efforts they are making to address climate change, pinpoint areas where they are falling short, and push each other to do more.
Before the meeting, there were fears that the administration of President Trump, who rejects the Paris accord, would seek to block any advances seen as counter to American interests.
In the end, most agreed that US diplomats had engaged constructively, while delegations from several American states, cities, and businesses were praised for committing themselves to the goals of the Paris agreement.
The role of spoiler almost fell to Saudi Arabia, which held up a final agreement for several hours over objections to a phrase it feared might allow for future levies on fossil fuels such as oil.
‘‘There has been positive momentum all around us,’’ said Fiji’s Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, who presided over the meeting and swung the gavel to close it about 7 a.m.
‘‘We leave Bonn having notched up some notable achievements,’’ Bainimarama said, citing agreements on agriculture, ocean protection, indigenous people’s rights, and the launch of a new system to help people in poor countries get insurance against the effects of climate change.
Almost all the delegates at the conference acknowledged that the world’s nations are still failing to prevent drastic global warming in the decades ahead.
Many countries are already feeling the heat that is enveloping the globe, with dramatic floods, hurricanes, and droughts across the world in recent months adding a sense of urgency to the talks.
Environmental groups expressed satisfaction at the outcome of the negotiations, while noting there’s much still to do and little time left to ensure the Paris accord’s goal of keeping global warming significantly below 3.6 degrees is met.
Researchers say worldwide average temperatures have already risen 1.8 degrees since preindustrial times, largely due to carbon emissions from the United States and Europe over the past century.
US diplomat Judith Garber, speaking at the talks Thursday, reiterated Trump’s position that the United States will leave the Paris accord but added that ‘‘we remain open to the possibility of rejoining at a later date under terms more favorable to the American people.’’
Garber, the acting assistant secretary of state for oceans and international environmental and scientific affairs, said Washington remains ‘‘committed to mitigating greenhouse gas emissions through, among other things, increased innovation on sustainable energy and energy efficiency, and working toward low greenhouse gas emissions energy systems.’’
The conciliatory tone coming from US diplomats was at odds with the more combative position taken by White House adviser George David Banks, who raised eyebrows by hosting a procoal event during the talks.
Germany, which hosted the meeting, received mixed reviews.
While many praised the country’s negotiators for brokering deals between opposing groups at the talks, there was also disappointment that German Chancellor Angela Merkel failed to join other rich countries in announcing a firm deadline for phasing out the use of coal-fired power plants.
Merkel is currently locked in coalition talks with the environmentalist Green party and the probusiness Free Democrats, who disagree about the use of coal.
The Bonn meeting was a stepping stone toward next year’s talks in Katowice, Poland, where key decisions will have to be made, including on finalizing the Paris rule book and raising countries’ national ambitions for cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
