Behind the smiles of the family photo, under the Dubai sun, disagreements over oil remain deep: more than 140 world leaders are at COP28 on Friday to break climate paralysis, but the “turning point” called for by the King Charles is far from certain.
One after the other, presidents and monarchs took note of the extreme climate conquering the Earth and the collective apathy in the face of warming. Most were content to repeat their existing commitments on the climate, almost none of which are in line with the Paris Agreement, without opponents of an exit from fossil fuels announcing an about-face.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, recalling that India represented “17% of the planet’s population” for “4% of global emissions”, launched into an advocacy of his country’s efforts, a “model for world” in the balance found “between ecology and economy”.
He aims for carbon neutrality in 2070, 20 years after most rich countries, also called upon by experts to spend more to replace hydrocarbons with clean electricity and bring this date forward further.
Emmanuel Macron urged the rich G7 countries to set an example and stop burning coal by 2030, recalling that France would close its last coal-fired power plants, kept in operation with the energy crisis, before 2027.
“The Earth is fed up with climate agreements that are not respected,” thundered Brazilian President Lula, who will host COP30 in two years.
By the end of the conference scheduled for December 12, more than 170 leaders are expected, according to Sultan Al Jaber, president of COP28.
The burning of coal, oil and gas since the 19th century is taking us towards an unsustainable warming of almost 3°C by 2100. All the CO2 generated is by far the main source of warming, but never a COP n There has been a call to get out of it, as this involves economic and social changes.
As a warning to negotiators for the next two weeks, Polish President Andrzej Duda launched from the podium: “Exiting fossil fuels too quickly creates too heavy a burden for society.”
The war at the COP
The shadow of the Israel-Hamas conflict hangs over the gathering.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog traveled to Dubai to plead with his counterparts for the release of hostages still held in the Gaza Strip.
However, he left before his turn to speak at the podium, while hostilities resumed Friday with Hamas.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raïssi canceled his visit because Israel was invited to participate, according to official media, and his delegation left COP28 in protest.
Among other leaders who devoted part of their brief interventions to the conflict in Gaza, King Abdullah II of Jordan said it was not possible “to talk about climate change separately from the humanitarian tragedies around us.”
“We are talking here about inclusiveness in the climate, let’s be inclusive for the most vulnerable,” he said, citing the Palestinians in Gaza and people affected by conflicts around the world.
An explosive paragraph
Alongside the leaders’ speeches, the Emirati hosts catalyzed major announcements of non-binding country commitments, to give a positive impetus to the official negotiations, under the auspices of the UN.
The most anticipated will be for Saturday, with the commitment of more than 110 countries to triple renewable energy capacities by 2030, a global objective which now appears within reach, given the significant growth of solar energy in recent years .
The atmosphere at COP28 is relatively positive at the end of the second day. The Emirati presidency succeeded in having adopted on Thursday the realization of a fund to compensate for climate losses and damages in vulnerable countries, requested for decades.
The first contributions are not enough with around 700 million dollars, but show goodwill, essential to ease tensions between North and South, and move forward on fossils.
A working document for the final agreement, published Friday morning, proposes that countries decide on a “reduction” or “exit” from fossil fuels. Without doubt the paragraph which will be most hotly debated in the coming days.