Sultan Al Jaber, more befitting the CEO of a large multinational company than a diplomat, led the Dubai Climate Summit COP28 towards what some countries and himself called a historic agreement. . Although the word historic is often overused, it is true that in the past 30 years of climate change negotiations, there has not been a single agreement that addressed fossil fuels as the cause of the crisis. But in Dubai, delegates from around 200 countries at COP28 agreed to a document calling for a “divestment from fossil fuels.” Just a month ago, such a feat seemed like science fiction to him.
The document is not as ambitious as many countries had hoped. These ambitions faced open and head-on opposition from several oil-producing countries, led by Saudi Arabia, and from OPEC itself, which expressed opposition to any mention of fossil fuels.
But to the surprise of many, the summit presided over by Al Jaber succeeded in finding a middle ground between two very distant positions, including the unexpected decision to leave fossil fuels behind. It included a call.
But who is Al Jaber? In theory, judging by his resume, the oil tycoon could be considered one of the worst villains in the fight against climate change. In addition to being the UAE's Minister of Industry, he is also the CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, the world's eighth largest oil company.
Indeed, after it was announced that al-Jaber would chair the summit earlier this year, 450 environmental organizations sent a letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres asking him to block his appointment. was an action he could not have taken. This is because countries in each region decide where the climate summit will be held, and this time it was held in Asia. “A COP overseen by fossil fuel executives cannot be considered legitimate. The COP Presidency must be free and independent from the influence of fossil fuels,” the letter, written in January, says, but is no longer outdated. do not have.
But when the criticism began, John Kerry, the US special envoy for climate change and one of the architects of the Paris Agreement, came to al-Jaber's defense. The American politician recalled that al-Jaber was an “experienced diplomat and businessman” who had led several summits in the past. Kerry also highlighted that in addition to being the head of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Al Jaber was also the president of Masdar, a state-owned company specializing in renewable energy.
Al-Jaber, who is not a member of the country's royal family, was given the mandate in the early 2000s to diversify the country's energy investments, which had previously relied solely on oil and gas. And he became the head of Masdar.
Despite this other aspect of his curriculum, his appointment as chairman of the climate summit remained subject to serious doubts and doubts. These suspicions were further heightened just days before COP28 opened, when the BBC published a series of documents suggesting the United Arab Emirates planned to use its role as host country to seal oil and gas deals. However, this is clearly a violation of UN rules. For these summits. when asked about the charges. “I can't believe it's true,” Guterres told reporters.
At a pre-summit press conference held on Wednesday, November 29, Al-Jaber responded to a BBC report. “These claims are false, untrue, inaccurate and inaccurate,” he said, adding: “The UAE and myself need the COP and the COP Presidency to establish business and commercial relations. Do you think so?” he added.
The atmosphere was calm, but fossil fuels were at the center of the negotiations. Guterres opened the summit by warning that “we cannot save a burning planet with a firehose of fossil fuels.”
However, controversy arose again. guardian During the summit, Al Jaber said “there is no science'' showing that the world needs to phase out fossil fuels to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, the most ambitious goal of the Paris Agreement. “We will not do that,” the meeting was broadcast. Furthermore, in his speech, recorded just days before the opening of COP28, he claimed that abolishing fossil fuels would “put the world back in the cave”. This is an argument often used in the fossil fuel industry. “Help us. If we don’t want the world to go back to caves, please give us a roadmap for phasing out fossil fuels that will enable sustainable socio-economic development,” he said in his speech, adding: I'm in charge of that,” he added.charging [of COP28]”
Mr Al Jaber was forced to explain his comments at a separate press conference. He emphasized that “the gradual reduction of fossil fuels is inevitable,'' and he also advocated this in his reported speech. Guardian.
At COP28, we surrounded ourselves with a strong team of experts and former climate change negotiators with extensive summit experience. The team was led by Adnan Amin, former chief executive officer of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), who was CEO of COP28. By the way, IRENA's headquarters are located in Ad Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. As part of its efforts to diversify its investment and revenue sources, the United Arab Emirates has made significant efforts to ensure that IRENA is headquartered within the country.
Despite the controversy, COP28 started with good news. The summit agreed to establish a fund for vulnerable countries struggling to cope with the loss and damage caused by climate change.
However, that did not stop fossil fuels from taking center stage at COP28. On the contrary, they began to attract more and more attention. On Monday, the presidential administration presented a draft agreement, but it contained weak language on fossil fuels, sparking widespread criticism from environmentalists and many countries. The COP28 Presidency made clear that this is just a starting point and recognizes the red lines that must not be crossed at this time.
Negotiations continued, the text was strengthened, and finally, to the surprise of many, the first call to leave fossil fuels behind was approved in Dubai. “He's a very smart guy,” admitted a negotiator who has watched al-Jaber at summits over the years. “And he is probably one of the chairs who knows the most about the most important issues in the COP.” Perhaps that's because he has one foot in the fossil fuel sector and the other in renewable energy.
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