![]() ![]() ![]() The next day – amid observers reporting that negotiations had fallen into “ disarray” – the presidency launched another draft version of the global stocktake text. Credit: Photo by COP28 / Christopher Pike / Flickr. Sultan Al Jaber, COP28 President at the UN Climate Change Conference COP28 at Expo City Dubai on December 10, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. One seasoned COP observer told Carbon Brief they had been “pointless”, with countries merely restating existing positions.) General view of the Special Spotlight: Majlis Style Conversation with Dr. (At the summit’s end, Al Jaber said the Majlis made “all the difference” in agreeing the outcome of COP28. When the ministerial pairings produced little progress, the presidency attempted to push talks forward by holding a “Majlis” on 10 December – an “Emirati tradition of bringing together a small, curated group to discuss specific challenges in an open, bold, and solutions-oriented way”, according to the UAE. ![]() “We’re here because we very much believe and respect the science…Everything this presidency works on is centred around the science.” Sat at a table flanked by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) chair Prof Jim Skea, he told reporters: The next day, Al Jaber faced journalists during a highly unusual COP press conference attended by Carbon Brief. The remark sparked fierce backlash from the scientific and political community. “There is no science out there – or no scenario out there – that says the phase-out of fossil fuels is going to achieve 1.5C.” However, crisis gripped the presidency again when remarks Al Jaber made regarding the science of phasing out fossil fuels during a live online event in November resurfaced in a story by the Guardian and the Centre for Climate Reporting. (All of the COP28 texts can be viewed in Carbon Brief’s text tracker.) It was the first UN document of its kind to include references to phasing out fossil fuels. The same day, a first early draft of the global stocktake text was released (the key agreed outcome from the summit, see: Global stocktake). The next day, the COP28 presidency and the International Energy Agency (IEA) launched a joint statement acknowledging that “fossil fuel demand and supply must phase down this decade” – the clearest signal yet that the UAE would, against expectations, facilitate ambitious action on fossil fuels at the talks. In the days ahead of the summit, pressure on Al Jaber intensified after an investigation by BBC News and the Centre for Climate Reporting alleged that the UAE planned to use its role as COP host to strike “secret” oil-and-gas deals behind the scenes of the summit. Some, including US special climate envoy John Kerry, called the criticism of Al Jaber “ unfair” and said it was important that oil-producing countries are included in the COP process. In May, more than 100 US lawmakers and members of the European parliament called for his removal, the Financial Times reported. The appointment of the head of the UAE’s state-owned oil company, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), to the role of arbiter of climate talks immediately sparked outcry.Īccording to Reuters, Greta Thunberg called Al Jaber’s appointment “completely ridiculous”, while former US vice president Al Gore said fossil-fuel interests had taken over COP. The UN climate change presidency is rotated around the world, with the UAE representing the Asia-Pacific region.ĭr Sultan Al Jaber was appointed COP28 president-designate in January of this year. UAE ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum announced that Dubai would host COP28 in November 2021. However, many countries walked away from the talks frustrated at the lack of a clear call for a fossil-fuel “ phase-out” this decade – and at a “ litany of loopholes” in the text that might enable the production and consumption of coal, oil and gas to continue.ĭespite an early breakthrough on launching a fund to pay for “ loss and damage” from climate change, developing countries were left disappointed by a lack of new financial commitments for transitioning away from fossil fuels and adapting to climate impacts.ĬOP28 president and oil executive Dr Sultan Al Jaber hailed the “ world-first” achievement of getting “fossil fuels” in a UN climate change agreement. The commitment is included in the first “ global stocktake” of how countries can accelerate action to meet the goals of the landmark Paris Agreement. It is the first time such an agreement has been reached in 28 years of international climate negotiations. Nearly every country in the world has agreed to “transition away from fossil fuels” – the main driver of climate change – at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |