2023-12-04 20:01:52
The Saudi Minister of Energy said he was “absolutely” opposed to an agreement on the exit from fossil fuels at COP28, setting the tone for the difficult negotiations taking place in Dubai.
“Exit” or “reduction” of oil, gas and coal are at the heart of fierce discussions at COP28, and the two options appear for the moment in the first draft of the major text which the conference must produce, in the form of a “global review” of the 2015 Paris Agreement.
But Prince Abdelaziz bin Salman affirmed that his country, the world’s largest oil exporter, was “absolutely not in agreement”, in an interview given in Riyadh to Bloomerg, broadcast on Monday.
“And I assure you that no one – I’m talking regarding governments – believes it.”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres insisted last week that “the 1.5°C limit is only sustainable if we eventually stop burning all fossil fuels.”
But Prince Abdulaziz said: “I would like to challenge everyone who… says publicly that we need to (get out of fossil fuels), I will give you their name and number, call them and ask them how they intend to do so.”
“If they think this is a question of higher morality, that’s fantastic. Let them do it themselves. And we’ll see what they can do.”
China and Russia are also opposed to any mention of fossil fuels in the text.
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