COP28: historical deal agreed for world to ‘transition away’ from fossil fuels

The COP28 United Nations summit reached a landmark agreement on Wednesday morning that supporters said marked the first time countries have been pushed to move away from fossil fuels to mitigate the worst effects of climate change.

The 12-day ‘Conference of Parties’ summit in Dubai had overrun as it often does into eleventh hour negotiations over the terminology of the final COP text, after the “phase out” of fossil fuels was omitted from the draft a day before the end of the conference. The United States, European Union, and United Kingdom, as well as many small island states which are threatened by rising sea levels, were part of the more than 100 countries pushing for a complete phase out of fossil fuels. However, countries with vast oil reserves, such as Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Uganda were against the term “phase out” being included in the final text.

Instead, the text, agreed on by nearly 200 countries, called for a transition away from fossil fuels before 2030 based on the global stocktake, a sobering report released in September by the UN indicating that the world is not on track to reach the target of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid a climate catastrophe with their current environmental targets in place. The new agreement marks the first time in the history of any COP climate summit text that the transition of fossil fuels – which the UN says contributes to around 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions – has been acknowledged.

Commenting on the landmark agreement, the UAE’s COP28 President Sultan Al Jaber said: “We have delivered a comprehensive response to the global stocktake. We have delivered a robust action plan to keep 1.5C (2.7F) [of global heating above preindustrial levels] in reach. It is a balanced plan that addresses emissions… it is built on common ground. It is strengthened by full inclusivity. It is a historic package to accelerate climate action. It is the UAE consensus.”