COP28: UAE names oil chief to head climate talks
January 12, 2023
The United Arab Emirates on Thursday named the head of the national oil company as president of this year's United Nations climate talks.
Sultan al-Jaber's appointment as president-designate of the conference known as COP28, prompted fierce criticism from environmental activists.
"I sincerely believe that climate action today is an immense economic opportunity for investment in sustainable growth," he was quoted as saying, promising a "pragmatic" approach.
But climate activists said the chief executive officer of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company can not lead the conference.
"This appointment goes beyond putting the fox in charge of the henhouse," Teresa Anderson, global lead on climate justice at ActionAid, said.
Harjeet Singh, head of global political strategy at Climate Action Network International, said the appointment "poses an outrageous conflict of interest."
Why was al-Jaber chosen?
Each year, the country hosting the UN negotiations, known as the Conference of the Parties, or COP, nominates a person to chair the talks. The nominee's position as "COP president'' is confirmed by delegates at the start of the discussions, usually without objections.
Al-Jaber, the UAE's minister of industry, is also the Gulf state's special envoy for climate change and has participated in more than 10 COP meetings.
He is also the CEO of Masdar, the UAE's renewable energy company, and has "played a key role in shaping the country's clean energy path," according to the UAE.
"This will be a critical year in a critical decade for climate action," al-Jaber was quoted as saying.
He has a tough balancing act ahead of him, Rachel Kyte, dean of the Fletcher School of international affairs at Tufts University in the US, warned.
"The UAE is competing to be the most efficient and lowest-cost source of fossil fuels as global production must diminish through the energy transition," she said. "It will be challenging as COP president to unite countries around more aggressive action while at the same time suggesting that other producers stop producing because UAE has you covered."
COP28 in the UAE
The UAE, one of the world's biggest crude producers, will host COP28 in Dubai in November and December.
COP27, held in Egypt in November, concluded with the adoption of a hotly contested text on aid to developing countries affected by climate change but failed to set new ambitions for lowering greenhouse gas emissions.
Al-Jaber promised an "inclusive agenda" that ramps up action on emissions cuts, encourages a just energy transition, and ensures "substantial, affordable climate finance" geared to the countries most vulnerable to climate change.
Former UN climate chief Yvo de Boer offered support for the UAE and al-Jaber, saying his work in "green growth strategy" and renewable energy give him the "understanding, experience and responsibility" to make COP28 a success.
lo/msh (AP, AFP, dpa)