28 November 2023 – This year’s COP28 will be hosted by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in Dubai. But as one of the top 10 oil-producing nations in the world, should the UAE host the UN Climate Conference?
The COP Climate summits are an important tool in the world’s fight against climate change. They are attended by over a hundred world leaders to discuss ways to tackle this environmental issue.
One of the results of the climate conferences organised by the UN was the Paris Agreement that was achieved in 2015. Almost 200 countries signed the agreement, which aims at keeping the long-term global temperature below 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
Every UN Climate Conference brings world leaders together to discuss and agree on how this target can be achieved.
However, this year it will be hosted by the UAE, one of the world’s top oil-producing nations. This choice has been controversial, and it begs the question if a nation whose economy is based on fossil fuels should be hosting it.
Head Of Large Oil Company Appointed As COP28 President
When it was announced that the UEA will host this year’s COP28, the choice was immediately controversial, with campaigners highlighting the obvious conflict of interest involved. But that wasn’t the only controversy.
The host country of the climate conference appoints a person to act as president and who is responsible to run the summit. And the UAE decided to appoint Sultan al Jaber, who is the head of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC).
As one of the world’s largest oil companies, ADNOC’s purpose is to produce oil, which is the exact opposite of what the UN climate summit tries to achieve. The company has plans to almost double its oil production capacity by 2027, despite scientists saying the world needs to stop the use of fossil fuels, including oil.
So it comes as no surprise that the announcement of his appointment immediately sparked calls to appoint someone else or at least that he resigns from his post of head of ADNOC.
The conflict of interest is clear. However, some commentators have pointed to Mr al Jaber’s involvement with MASDAR. He is co-founder of this state-owned renewables company, which invests in over 40 countries.
By some, he is therefore seen as a leader in clean energy and industry in his country. However, the fact that his roles as head of ADNOC and COP28 president have completely opposite aims, remains.
UN Climate Conference As Place To Make Oil And Gas Deals
Yesterday the news broke that the UAE was planning to use its position as host of COP28 to make oil and gas deals with other countries. The UNFCCC‘s code of conduct forbids the use of the UN Climate Conference to discuss commercial interests.
Leaked documents show that the UAE planned to discuss fossil fuel deals with 15 nations, including China, Canada, Australia, Columbia and Germany. The documents reveal that the country wanted to discuss the development of new fossil fuel projects with governments of some countries.
The leaked briefings also include planned discussions with 20 countries, including the UK, US, France and China, about commercial opportunities for MASDAR, the UAE’s renewable energy company.
The COP28 team from the UAE didn’t, when asked, deny that they were using the meetings arranged for the climate summit for business talks. But they didn’t want to say what was discussed, claiming “private meetings are private”.
This flagrant abuse of the role of host of COP28 to pursue commercial interests, which go against the UNFCCC’s code of conduct, could risk that the climate summit fails.
The president of the COP is the leader of the world, is trying to build consensus on behalf of the planet. If any president of the COP tries to bring a particular interest, commercial interest, that could mean the failure of the COP.
Manuel Pulgar-Vidal, Head of COP20 in Peru in 2014
Through behaviour like this, the UN’s climate summits also lose the trust of people. This is very serious and “breathtakingly hypocritical”, according to Prof Michael Jacobs.
I actually think it’s worse than that, because the UAE at the moment is the custodian of a United Nations process aimed at reducing global emissions. And yet, in the very same meetings where it’s apparently trying to pursue that goal, it’s actually trying to do side deals which will increase global emissions.
Prof Michael Jacobs, Expert on UN Climate Politics from the University of Sheffield
Our Opinion
We all know about the seriousness of the climate crisis and that we need to act now. Scientists have made it very clear that the world needs to act faster and more radically if we are to avert a climate catastrophe.
To meet the targets in the Paris Agreement, the whole world needs to come together and put the right measures in place. Only if we get everyone to the table will be able to succeed, this means we have to involve the oil-producing nations like the UAE.
However, in our opinion, they have shown us that they should not host COP28 or any other UN Climate Conference. Not only are they breaking the UNFCCC’s code of conduct by discussing commercial interests, but they also pursue new gas and oil developments.
As COP28 hosts their role is to discuss how the world can reduce carbon emissions, yet they use their role to strike deals that would increase carbon emissions.
That’s not just a conflict of interest, in our view, but it’s incredibly hypocritical and shows a complete disregard for our planet and the people who live on it. Let’s be clear, it’s not the people in the UAE who suffer from the effects of climate change.
They have the wealth that is needed to protect themselves. It’s the poor countries and communities in the world that have to deal with the consequences of the actions of the rich.
We believe that this climate inequality should exclude nations whose economy is built on fossil fuels from hosting any COP summit. Unless they can show that they are taking active steps to move their economies over to renewable sources.
And as for COP28? Well, in our opinion, it has lost its credibility. Let’s see what results will be achieved, but we, here at EcoHomeLife, aren’t holding out much hope.
