THE United Nations-led summit known as COP28 ended in Expo City Dubai after nearly two weeks of speeches, demonstrations, and negotiations. The draft text of a summit agreement released on Monday caused divisions after the word “phase out” was dropped and instead replaced with “reducing” the production and consumption of fossil fuels. At least 80 countries including the United States and the European Union supported the call to finally end the use of fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and gas.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia and Russia were among several countries that insisted only on reducing climate pollution instead of phasing it out.
All 198 countries must agree on the draft or there is no deal. Without a deal, negotiators are expected to meet again beyond the climate summit after the deadline was not met. The UN Climate Change Summit ended on Tuesday, December 12.
