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Attracta Mooney, Financial Times
The failure of the G20 to directly mention “transitioning away from fossil fuels” following a meeting has “escalated fears among key negotiators at the UN COP29 summit in Baku that Donald Trump’s US election victory has put the brakes on climate action”, the Financial Times reports. At COP28 last year, parties agreed to “transitioning away from fossil fuels” as part of a package of measures to accelerate climate action. The G20 statement released yesterday says countries “welcome and fully subscribe to the ambitious and balanced outcome of the UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai (COP28), in particular the UAE Consensus”, without an explicit mention of fossil-fuel transition, the FT says. It adds: “Several lead negotiators said the failure to include the direct reference to fossil fuels would make the talks in Baku more difficult.” The Middle East Eye reports that Saudi Arabia is leading the charge to prevent the fossil-fuel transition being mentioned in COP29’s negotiated text, according to observers. Reuters reports that Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva used his last address to G20 leaders to urge them to bring forward their net-zero targets by five to 10 years.
In addition, an exclusive by Uruguay's El Observador says that Argentina has confirmed it will not leave the Paris Agreement, following much corridor speculation in Baku. Reuters says that Australia and Turkey are in a “stand-off” over who will host COP31 in 2026, with neither party willing to give up their bid. A Reuters video shows Australia unveiling a $50m pledge to the loss and damage fund in a bid to boost its credentials. The Press Association reports that the UK has joined an international coalition to phase out fossil-fuel subsidies at COP29. It adds: “A total of 16 countries are now part of the Coalition on Phasing Out Fossil Fuel Incentives, which aims to develop national action strategies, remove barriers and facilitate transparency to stop payments linked to oil and gas exploration and production.” Climate Home News adds that Colombia and New Zealand also joined, but the group as a whole has missed its initial targets. The UK has launched a Global Clean Power Alliance at the G20, with Brazil, Australia, Canada and France among the members, according to a separate Press Association report. Lula and Keir Starmer have an op-ed touting the new alliance in the Times. The Nigerian Tribune reports that Nigeria used its intervention at COP29 to announce details of a new carbon registry. The Guardian reports that “hundreds” of industrial farming lobbyists are in attendance at COP29. Le Monde reports that a US lawmaker who has publicly supported Armenia has accused Azerbaijan of a “planned assault” at his hotel during his visit for COP29. The New York Times reports on efforts to cut holidaymakers’ climate impact on COP29’s tourism day.
Sara Schonhardt, Zack Colman, Zia Weise and Karl Mathiesen, Politico
Elsewhere at COP29, delegates are eagerly awaiting the release of a new draft version of the climate finance text, which may be the first to include a monetary figure – or “quantum” – for parties to debate on. The text is scheduled to be released at 5pm Baku time today (although some say it might come “overnight”). Politico reports that “developing countries publicly doubled down [on] Tuesday on their call for trillions in climate aid from richer nations – but privately, some acknowledged that a significantly smaller proposal European Union governments are discussing might be the best they will get for now”. The EU is reportedly considering offering a $200-$300bn a year, “an amount that could eventually be buttressed by much more private-sector financing”, according to Politico. Developing nations have repeatedly called for the new target to be in the trillions. According to Politico, Sierra Leone’s minister of environment and climate change Jiwoh Abdulai responded to the EU’s apparent proposal by saying: “It's a good start, but that's why we have negotiations…Our position is clear what the needs are, and I'm pretty sure they know what the needs are also.” The Associated Press has more detail on the negotiations for climate finance, reporting: “Negotiators are fighting over three big parts of the issue: How big the numbers are, how much is grants or loans, and who pays. The ‘how big’ question is the toughest to negotiate and will likely be resolved only after the first two are solved, COP29 lead negotiator Yalchin Rafiyev told the Associated Press in an interview Tuesday.”
Conversations about whether the “donor base” for climate finance should be expanded to include emerging economies that are considered “developing countries” by the UN climate convention are rumbling on. The Guardian reports on comments from Nigeria’s environment minister saying that China and India “cannot be classified in the same category as Nigeria and other African countries”. The newspaper says: “China should take on some additional responsibility for providing financial help to the poorest and most vulnerable, several delegates told the Guardian. India should not be eligible for receiving financial help as it has no trouble attracting investment, some said.” Dialogue Earth has an explainer on whether China will “assume more responsibility” for climate finance.
Global Times
China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian says developed countries should provide “sustainable financial support for developing countries…[the] Paris Agreement has made it clear that developed country parties shall provide financial resources to assist developing country parties, and other parties are encouraged to provide such support voluntarily” in answering questions about COP29 and the recent G20 Rio de Janeiro Leaders' Declaration, state-supporting newspaper Global Times reports. State-run newspaper China Daily quotes China’s climate envoy Liu Zhenmin, saying China is “not obliged to contribute to the post-2025 climate financing target that is expected to be announced during the COP29”.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg says that China now has an opportunity at COP29 to “score points” with the EU, which could potentially help ease “trade tensions over its green exports to the bloc by helping to secure agreement on the key unresolved issue”. The news outlet adds that the EU is under increasing pressure to “step up and help secure a deal to raise more financial aid for developing countries” with Donald Trump’s imminent return to the White House, and that China wants to “play a role in making that happen without dragging out the meeting”. A newsletter by Bloomberg says that the retirement of US climate envoy John Kerry and his Chinese counterpart, Xie Zhenhua, along with the return of Donald Trump, has left the “stage open” for “new alliances” when it comes to tackling climate change. It continues: “The Chinese team here in Baku has drawn a red line at being classified as an official donor country to any deal, but it is willing to contribute to climate finance more voluntarily.” The Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post (SCMP) publishes a comment by its China reporter Shi Jiangtao, who says “pressure is mounting on China to fill a potential void in climate leadership following the re-election of Donald Trump”.
Elsewhere, state news agency Xinhua reports that Chinese president Xi Jinping mentioned climate change during a speech at the G20 summit. Another Xinhua report says that Xi has “made a five-point proposal to improve global governance” at the summit, including strengthening the “global financial safety net to better meet the green financing needs of developing countries”. BJX News also covers the story. (Xi’s full speech is published on the website of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.) Beijing News says that world leaders at the G20 summit have expressed “anticipation for a new collective quantified goal (NCQG) to be achieved at COP29”. A third Xinhua report says that Xi and his US counterpart, Joe Biden, have reaffirmed their “commitment to maintaining dialogue, fostering cooperation, and steering clear of conflict” on the sidelines of the APEC Meeting in Lima, Peru.
Finally, SCMP reports that China will “lower its tax rebates for exports of solar and lithium battery products”, a move that seeks to “ease international concerns about overcapacity in its new-energy sector, which has led to rising trade tensions”. Shun Chi-min, a Hong Kong meteorologist and former chief of the Observatory, says that “climate change may have led to the record number of super typhoons in the northwest of the Pacific Ocean this year”, according to another SCMP report. An editorial in the Financial Times calls for the UK to have a “coherent China strategy”, saying: “China’s pricing power in technologies such as wind and solar power, for instance, makes the prospect of Chinese plants in the UK potentially attractive. But the question of how much Britain is ready to depend for infrastructure on a rival must be addressed, along with the potential for data transfer from such facilities back to China.” The Times also has an editorial on the UK’s relationship with China, noting that Starmer has “made no mention” of following the US and Europe by introducing tough tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. The Economist has a podcast with the title: “What’s stopping China from leading the world’s climate fight?”
Brian Dabbs, E&E News
Incoming US president Donald Trump has selected Chris Wright, the CEO of fracking services company Liberty Energy, for the role of energy secretary, E&E News reports. According to the publication, “the oil and gas executive is a passionate proselytiser for fossil fuels, often touting the benefits of energy access while downplaying the threats posed by climate change”. According to the Verge, Wright previously made a LinkedIn post saying “there is no climate crisis”. The Financial Times has a piece on how “energy wildcatters” have ended up in charge of Trump’s energy policy.
Sarah Johnson, The Guardian
Eight times more children could face extreme heatwaves by 2050, compared to the 2000s, if “business-as-usual” continues, according to an annual report from Unicef. The report also finds that three times as many children will face river floods and nearly twice as many will face wildfires. The Guardian adds: “The greatest increases in children experiencing extreme heatwaves are expected in east and south Asia, the Pacific, the Middle East, and north, west and central Africa. River floods are expected to affect children in the same areas, as well as east Africa and the Pacific.” The Guardian also has charts illustrating new climate records set in 2024.
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