Deal reached to “phase out fossil fuels" at COP28 in Dubai; "Historic," Hoekstra says

The 198 countries at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai have reached an agreement on phasing out the use of fossil fuels. The global stocktake text was adopted with no objections. Transitioning away from fossil fuels was one of the European Union’s spearheads ahead of the summit. Dutch Climate Minister Rob Jetten called it an "important moment for the climate."

"For the first time, the world is expressing its intention to move away from fossil fuels, there is a fund for climate damage, and we have taken steps toward adaption," Jetten said on X. "More ambitious is always better, but 1.5 degrees remains within sight." In the Paris Climate Agreement of 2015, the world leaders agreed to commit to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees.

“The world just adopted a historic decision to set in motion an irreversible, accelerated transition away from fossil fuels,” Wopke Hoekstra, the European Commissioner on Climate, said on X. “With that, we have achieved what we set out to do: keep 1.5 within reach and mark the beginning of the end of fossil fuels.”

The text adopted on Wednesday pressures countries to start a de facto phase-out for fossil fuels - coal, oil, and natural gas. According to NOS, scientists and politicians have been trying to obtain such a joint statement on stopping fossil fuels for about 20 years, but the oil states have always blocked the initiative. Ahead of this summit, OPEC, the association of oil-exporting countries, again urged member states to vote against the proposal, but the final statement was adopted anyway.

According to The Guardian correspondent Fiona Harvey, the deal isn’t perfect. It doesn’t force countries to transition away from fossil fuels, developing countries still need hundreds of billions in funding to help them with the transition, and there is no way to force developed countries and oil producers to move as fast as climate science urges. But as imperfect as it is, the deal represents significant progress for the countries committed to fighting climate change.