To check warming, must phase out heat-trapping fossil fuels: UN
New York: The world needs to phase out fossil fuels if it wants to curb global warming, the United Nations climate chief has said. But he said the idea might not make it on to the agenda of “make-or-break” international climate negotiations this year. A phase out of heat-trapping fossil fuels “is something that is at top of every discussion or most discussions that are taking place”, UN climate Executive Secretary Simon Stiell said. The idea might not make it on to the agenda of ‘make-or-break’ negotiations but a phase out of heat-trapping fossil fuels is at top of most discussions that are taking place. —Simon Stiell, UN climate executive secretary
“It is an issue that has global attention. How that translates into an agenda item and a (climate talks) outcome we will see.” Stiell told AP he couldn’t quite promise it would get a spot on the agenda in climate talks, called COP28, in Dubai later this year. That agenda decision is up to the president of the negotiations, Stiell said. He is the head of the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Sultan al-Jaber.
The decision by host nation United Arab Emirates to make al-Jaber the head of the climate conference has drawn fierce opposition from lawmakers in Europe and the US.
UAE officials said they want game-changing results in the climate talks and note that al-Jaber also runs a large renewable energy company.
Last year at climate talks, a proposal by India to phase out all fossil fuels, supported by the US and many European nations, never got on the agenda. What gets discussed is decided by the COP president, who last year was the foreign minister of Egypt, a natural gas exporting nation.