The 28th Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), has marked the first instance of adopting the idea of “transitioning away from fossil fuel” ever since it came into existence. This time the COP28 was hoted by United Arab Emirates.
This comes on Wednesday following intense debates for two weeks at the UN climate summit in Dubai. The agreement comes during the recorded hottest year in history.
The president of COP28 and Chief executive officer of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Sultan al-Jaber said, “through the night and the early hours of morning, we worked collectively for consensus”.
“Together we have confronted the realities and set the world in the right direction,” he said.
The COP28 called upon the nation’s to accelerate efforts for climate action in this “critical decade” Under the 2015 Paris Agreement.
India called for equity and justice in global climate action at COP28 and have been supporting phasing down of all fossil fuels including coal. However, the fine print remained focused on growth of brown fuels and providing a business opportunity to oil-rich countries and some leeway in their green transition to developing countries.
Meanwhile, India’s Minister for Environment, Forest and Climat Change Bhupendra Yadav supporting the proposal at COP28 said, “We support the proposal of the presidency on the COP decision document while reiterating the fundamental principles enshrined in the Paris Agreement to take action for the global good in accordance with national circumstances.”
He also said that, “India urges that the determination shown at COP is also substantiated with means to bring it to fruition. This must be based on the principles of equity and climate justice, which are respectful of national circumstances, and where the developed countries take the lead based on their historical contributions”.
