France, Oct. 19 -- Cop17 runs in the Armenian capital Yerevan until 30 October. At its core is the first global review of progress since the adoption of a landmark nature pact in 2022.

That agreement set 23 targets, from cutting pollution to saving threatened species and conserving 30 percent of the world's land and oceans.

Countries are off-track on 22 of them, a draft UN review found.

"Do I think we're moving in the right direction? Yes, but way too slowly," said Astrid Schomaker, who heads the UN Convention on Biological Diversity.

"I think it's too early to say whether any of the targets will be reached or not reached. But I think we can clearly say they're all still reachable - but only with significant changes being made."

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