Cop28: Australia, US and UK say they won’t sign draft agreement as opposition to UAE proposal hardens

Opposition to a draft decision paper at Cop28 hardened overnight as a large number of countries dismissed it as being weak with an absence of clear commitment to phase out fossil fuels.

A revised version is expected to be delivered later on Tuesday by Cop28 president Sultan Al Jaber. But it is already clear the UN climate talks in Dubai, which were due to end on Tuesday, will probably run over into tomorrow – or even longer.

In the most significant stance opposing the draft issued on Monday, a group of countries including Australia, the US, the UK, Canada and Japan said they will “not be a co-signatory” to “death certificates” for small island states, and demanded a stronger agreement to deal with fossil fuels and address the climate crisis.

What gave their response considerable clout was that it included some of the world’s largest fossil fuel producing states.

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Their statement was delivered by the Australian climate change minister, Chris Bowen, on behalf of what’s known as the umbrella group of countries.

[ Young climate activist from the Amazon thanks Ireland for opportunity to participate in Cop28 ]

It came after tensions flared on Monday following circulation of the text of a draft deal proposed by the summit presidency, the UAE. It avoided highly contentious calls for a “phase-out” or “phase-down” of fossil fuels in an attempt to find consensus from nearly 200 countries that have been meeting for nearly a fortnight.

Some observers, however, welcomed elements of the draft, including the first mention in a Cop text of reducing fossil fuel production, but others were scathing, describing it as “grossly insufficient” and “incoherent”. In an effort to break the impasse, the EU circulated an alternative text to the negotiating parties.

Cedric Schuster of Samoa, chair of the Alliance of Small Island States, said: “We will not sign our death certificate. We cannot sign on to text that does not have strong commitments on phasing out fossil fuels.”

Mr Bowen said there were some positive elements in the draft, but their group was united in believing it was too weak. It needed to send a much clearer signal on the future of fossil fuels, better address climate adaptation and deliver “an outcome which we can be proud of and explain to people is not a step forward, but a step change”, he said.

[ Cop28 thrown into crisis as ‘weak’ draft decision text rejected by EU and other countries ]

He said the group believed in a phase-out of “unabated” fossil fuels – a controversial position that suggests coal, oil and gas could still be used if carbon capture and storage technology proved viable. But he said it could support different wording in the deal, suggesting “a transition away from fossil fuels in keeping with the science”.

He said it could not be flexible on having an agreement that kept the goal of limiting global heating to 1.5 degrees within reach. “That’s not up for compromise,” MR Bowen added. – Additional reporting Guardian

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