As part of attempts to reduce emissions that contribute to global warming and hold it in check, a coalition of nations including EU economies and climate-vulnerable nations said Friday that a “urgent” transition away from fossil fuels is required.
The High Ambition Coalition said the year-end COP28 discussions must pave the way for “an urgent and just transition to renewables, a more climate resilient world, and climate justice for all” in a statement made at the conclusion of climate talks in Brussels.
“We must accelerate the global energy transition away from fossil fuels,” said the statement, signed by representatives of countries including Germany, France and the Marshall Islands, as well as the European Commission.
In accordance with most recent findings from UN climate scientists, it called for greenhouse gas emissions to peak by 2025 at the latest and to be reduced by 43 percent by 2030 from 2019 levels.
“This requires systemic transformations across all sectors, driven by an urgent phase out from fossil fuels, starting with a rapid decline of fossil fuel production and use within this decade,” the countries said.
The declaration comes in the wake of a ministerial gathering in Belgium where the COP28’s incoming president highlighted priorities for the crucial Dubai meeting.
The world is still far from meeting its climate targets despite the fact that last week saw record-breaking high temperatures worldwide and that several countries were devastated by floods, storms, and heatwaves that destroyed crops.
This has led some nations to push for the COP28 to make a decision to completely phase out planet-warming fossil fuels from the world’s energy mix.
