Cop28 president, UN chief clash over future of fossil fuels: ‘entire humanity paying the price’
- UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres pushed for a future without fossil fuels while Cop28 president Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber urged their continued use
- The UK’s King Charles also pleaded with world leaders to make progress in the global climate agenda
Speaking a day after Cop28 president Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber proposed embracing the continued use of fossil fuels, Guterres said: “We cannot save a burning planet with a fire hose of fossil fuels.”
“The 1.5-degree [Celsius] limit is only possible if we ultimately stop burning all fossil fuels. Not reduce. Not abate,” he said, referring to nascent technologies to capture and store carbon emissions.
The competing visions summed up the most divisive issue facing world leaders at this year’s UN climate summit in the oil-producing United Arab Emirates.
“Scientists have been warning for so long, we are seeing alarming tipping points being reached,” he said.
“Unless we rapidly repair and restore nature’s economy, based on harmony and balance, which is our ultimate sustainer, our own economy and survivability will be imperilled,” said the king, who has spent most of his adult life campaigning for the environment.
The comments from Charles, whose role as Britain’s head of state is largely ceremonial, appeared to be at odds with his government.
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“We do not have much time to correct the mistakes of the last century,” Modi said. “Over the past century, a small section of humanity has indiscriminately exploited nature.
“However, the entire humanity is paying the price for this, especially people living in the global south.”
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Cop28 prepares temperature check on climate at Dubai meeting
A former Marshall Islands president, whose country faces inundation from climate-driven sea level rise, resigned from the main Cop28 advisory board on Friday in objection to the UAE’s support of continued use of fossil fuels.
Hilda Heine said in her resignation letter that she was “deeply disappointed” that the UAE had reportedly used its Cop28 role to broker oil and gas deals. The UAE has strongly denied the accusations.
“These actions undermine the integrity of the COP presidency and the process as a whole,” she wrote, adding that restoring trust meant delivering “an outcome that demonstrates that you are committed to phasing out fossil fuels”.
The UAE’s Cop28 presidency said it was “extremely disappointed” by Heine’s resignation.
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“We have been completely clear, open, and honest throughout this process, and it is a shame to see unverified reporting affect our team and undermine the world’s best chance to keep 1.5 within reach,” the statement said.
Scientists say that a global temperature rise beyond this threshold will unleash catastrophic and irreversible impacts worldwide.
The draft offers “building blocks” for a political outcome and includes several options to address the central problem of whether, and to what extent, fossil fuels should play a role in the future.
One of the options involves including commitments to phase down or phase out the use of fossil fuels, to quit coal energy and to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030.
Also on the table for discussion is whether to phase out fossil fuel subsidies, which totalled some US$7 trillion last year, and whether to include provisions for carbon capture and removal technology.
On Thursday, the UAE’s Jaber urged countries to work together with oil companies to reach common ground.
The summit also clinched an early victory by adopting a new fund to help poor nations cope with climate disasters.
