China backs UAE as Cop28 host

Cop28 President-designate Dr Sultan Al Jaber attends summit on climate action in Beijing

Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, and Cop28 President-designate, at the Friends of Paris High-Level Dialogue meeting in Beijing this week. Wam

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said China fully supports the UAE in hosting Cop28.

During a meeting with Cop28 President-designate Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Mr Wang said China would co-operate with the UAE to ensure positive outcomes at the conference, which starts at the end of November in Dubai.

Dr Al Jaber praised China’s “remarkable leadership” in energy transition while attending a summit on climate action in Beijing.

Dr Al Jaber, also UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, made the comment during an address at the Friends of Paris High-Level Dialogue meeting held in the Chinese capital this week.

“We have no time to waste, and we need a detailed action plan that delivers a robust and comprehensive response to the Global Stocktake across the key pillars of the Paris Agreement,” he said.

“We must agree on an ambitious mitigation work programme, finalise the global goal on adaptation, establish a fund for loss and damage and agree on an equitable approach to means of implementation.”

Acknowledging that the world is failing to meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement, Dr Al Jaber said Cop28 will help “translate all the ambitions of Paris into practical results.”

“The first pillar of that agenda is a fast, fair, equitable and well-managed energy transition,” he said.

“China’s remarkable leadership in this transition is one of the reasons I am optimistic that we can make breakthrough progress.”

He added: “This great country has already installed 1000GW of renewable energy capacity and will add another 500GW in wind and solar in the next three years alone. This aligns closely with Cop28’s call for a global goal of tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030.

“And with China leading the way, I am sure the whole world can do it.”

Vital role

Dr Al Jaber said China will also “play a vital role in expanding green growth through expanding South-South co-operation with the Belt and Road Initiative”, which is designed to drive investment in green infrastructure in emerging and developing economies.

The Cop28 President-designate reiterated the importance of operationalising the fund and funding commitments for loss and damage at the climate summit.

And he repeated calls for donor countries to double adaptation finance by 2025 and replenish the green climate finance.

Discussing the importance of preserving nature, Dr Al Jaber said “China’s commitment to ecological civilisation, enhancing natural ecosystems and achieving a nearly 100 per cent improvement in air quality since 2015.”

Dr Al Jaber was speaking at the fifth meeting of the Friends of Paris High-Level Dialogue, a non-government platform to convene climate champions to explore ideas for implementing the Paris Agreement.

The meeting featured discussions on the energy and industry transition, as well as financial reforms related to climate change.

During the trip, Dr Al Jaber held meetings with officials including Xie Zhenhua, China’s Special Envoy on Climate Change, Zhao Yingmin, Vice Minister of Ecology and Environment, and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

He also met Laurence Tubiana, chief executive of the European Climate Foundation, and a key architect of the Paris Agreement.