European Union Climate Ministers Confront Differences Over COP28 Negotiating Stance.
On Monday, climate ministers from European Union countries convened to determine the EU’s negotiating position for this year’s COP28 summit. However, they remain divided on critical matters, particularly the level of ambition regarding a global fossil fuel phase-out.
Traditionally, the EU has been a prominent advocate for ambitious climate action at the United Nations climate talks. The upcoming COP28 conference, scheduled to commence on November 30 in Dubai, is no exception.
A pivotal decision lies in whether COP attendees will collectively commit to phasing out fossil fuels for the first time. The burning of coal, oil, and gas is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, the primary driver of climate change.
Approximately 10 of the EU’s 27 member states, including Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Slovenia, are pushing for a comprehensive fossil fuel phase-out. Meanwhile, a similar number, including the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Poland, and Slovakia, advocate for a more cautious approach. They favor phasing out “unabated” fossil fuels, permitting countries to continue using coal, gas, and oil if they employ emission capture technology.
Crucially, EU countries must reach a unanimous consensus on their negotiating stance, meaning any one nation can block it.
This internal EU divide mirrors broader global tensions, with poorer nations within the EU voicing concerns about the economic impact of transitioning away from fossil fuels. Additionally, fossil fuel-producing and consuming countries, including those who have opposed previous phase-out agreements, like Saudi Arabia, are expected to resist such a move at the COP28 summit.
A draft of the EU’s negotiating position, calls for a “global phase-out of fossil fuels and a peak in their consumption in the near term.” The inclusion of brackets around “unabated” indicates that EU countries have yet to reach a consensus on this terminology.
The EU’s position is closely watched by other major emitters, and some diplomats argue that a weakened stance from the EU, the world’s third-largest economy, could undermine hopes for an ambitious COP28 agreement.
Fossil fuel subsidies present another contentious issue. Wealthy Western nations, including France and the Netherlands, are advocating for an EU commitment to phase out such subsidies by 2025. On the other hand, economies reliant on fossil fuels, like Poland, oppose setting a specific date for this phase-out.
Furthermore, countries will decide whether to publicly acknowledge that the EU anticipates surpassing its legally binding target to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030, as a result of recently implemented EU policies to cut carbon emissions.
