China’s top climate diplomat on Saturday said a final agreement on fossil fuels at the United Nations COP28 summit was important – even if not perfect – but he denied to say whether the nation could accept the idea to remove coal, oil and gas completely. An agreement by the world’s around 200 nations to remove fossil fuels – the sole driver of climate transformation – has become the make or break problem on the negotiating table at the Dubai summit.
The Chinese climate envoy, Xie Zhenhua, told reporters in a briefing that without the fossil fuels agreement there was not much chance of success at COP28. China remains so much dependent on fossil fuels, with coal still the nation’s hugest energy source. “The energy transition is very necessary … but this transition needs a period of pain. Each nation has different national conditions,” Xie said.
China wants a text that expresses the require to cut down fossil fuels as briskly as possible whilst at the same time permitting room for growing nations to maintain energy security and develop their economies. Asked about the language options on “phasing out” fossil fuels in the last negotiating text, Xie said China was already consulting with other nations in order to find a solution. “We all want to collaborate together to discover a language that points in the accurate direction of further attempts and reflects inclusiveness to the utmost extent and is acceptable to all parties,” he conveyed.