he 28th Conference of the Parties, which took place in Dubai, from November 30 to December 12, was a crucial event for the world to evaluate the progress and challenges of implementing the Paris climate agreement reached in COP21 that was held in 2015. The Paris Accord was a landmark treaty that aimed to limit global warming to 1.5 degree Celsius above the pre-industrial levels. The COP28 offered an opportunity for more than 190 countries to enhance their climate ambitions and mobilise financial and technical support for developing countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.

The mega event attracted [social] media attention due to lingering controversies related to anti-climate behaviour of major emitters of greenhouse gases such as the US and key EU economies, i.e. Germany, coupled with the lacklustre performance and institutional ineffectiveness of the United Nations – on account of its weak agency that has aggravated the climate crisis despite the annual organisation of climate summits since 1995. Some climate activists also saw irony in the role of the host country in the fossil fuel trade.

The UAE is one of the world’s top 10 oil-producing countries. It has an opaque environmental protection record. Interestingly, the host appointed the chief executive of the state-owned oil company, Sultan al-Jaber, as the president of the COP28, raising concerns over conflict of interest and policy credibility. As per media reports, his oil company tended to enhance production capacity by striking oil deals with representatives from other countries. In addition, his statement that there is “no science” behind fossil fuel phase-out added another controversy, leaving capitalist footprints on an anti-climate roadmap.

The UAE is also one of the most climate-vulnerable countries in the world due to its extremely hot and humid climate, which could render it uninhabitable in the distant, if not near, future. However, the Emirates has invested heavily in renewable energy and clean technologies such as solar, and has set ambitious targets to reduce its carbon emissions besides diversifying the economy. Nonetheless, the sheikhdom’s per capita emissions and ecological footprint remain among the highest in the world; thus, perpetuating its dependence on fossil fuels for the desalination of water and electricity.

The attitude of key capitalist economies such as the US, the UK, Germany and Australia is not too dissimilar from that of the UAE. For instance, the US under Trump withdrew from the Paris climate agreement unilaterally because major multinational corporations found it cheaper and profitable to use fossil fuels. Germany, which was taking some important steps in the direction of carbon neutrality, opted to shift to fossil fuels in order to mitigate challenges to its economy whose high growth depended largely on Russian crude oil and gas. The ongoing Russia-Ukraine war affected policy choices of key EU economies.

Importantly, major and smaller emitters struggled to draft consensual documents. The countries most affected by climate crisis urged major emitters to agree on a clearer text that indicated an end to fossil fuel use within a stipulated timeframe. Pakistan, for instance, demanded the establishment of a climate fund that could financially help the ‘victim’ countries and communities. Unsurprisingly, top emitters from the Global North and their commercial partners from the Gulf beat around the bush.

Nonetheless, to assuage climate activists and pro-environment scientists, the Conference of the Parties agreed to begin “reducing global consumption of fossil fuels to avert the worst of climate change, a first of its kind deal signalling the eventual end of the oil age.”

COP28 president Sultan al-Jaber dubbed the deal “historic” saying: “We are what we do, not what we say… we must take the steps necessary to turn this agreement into tangible actions.”

Welcoming the deal, Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs Espen Barth Eide said “[i]t is the first time that the world unites around such a clear text on the need to transition away from fossil fuels.” The US climate envoy, John Kerry, similarly opined, “this is a moment where multilateralism has actually come together and people have taken individual interests and attempted to define the common good.”

In the same vein, the Danish Minister for Climate and Energy Dan Jorgensen spoke in favour of the deal. He said, “we [are] standing here in an oil country, surrounded by oil countries and we made the decision saying let’s move away from oil and gas.”

However, the lead negotiator for the Alliance of Small Island States, Anne Rasmussen, criticised the deal: “[we] have made an incremental advancement over business as usual, when what we really need is an exponential step change in our actions.”

Former US vice president and climate activist Al Gore cautioned by saying: “the influence of petro-states is still evident in the half measures and loopholes included in the final agreement.”

The deal made at the COP28 calls for “transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable manner... so as to achieve net zero by 2050 in keeping with the science… It also calls for a tripling of renewable energy capacity globally by 2030.”

Top emitters from the Global North, along with their capitalist partners from the Global South, were once again able to greenwash the conference in terms of championing the text of the deal. The actual challenge lies in aligning domestic climate policies through legislations in the coming days.

The writer has a PhD in political science from Heidelberg University and a post-doc from UC Berkeley. He is a DAAD, FDDI and Fulbright fellow and an associate professor. He can be reached at ejaz.bhatty@gmail.com