Shortly after its signature, the final COP28 agreement was not unanimous… Many participants criticized its lack of clarity and ambition.
“Historic success” against “insufficient resolution” : Although the final COP 28 agreement was hailed as a realistic compromise, many participants highlighted its shortcomings, notably its lack of clarity on the abandonment of fossil fuels, like John Kerry, American climate envoy : “Obviously, many people here would have liked clearer language on the need to start reducing fossil fuels during this critical decade. But we know this is a compromise between many parties. “
Island states, particularly exposed to the consequences of global warming, say they are disappointed by the text. Emue, the representative of Samoa, Anne Rasmussen, declared that she feared, on certain points, “a flashback”.“We have come to the conclusion that the change in direction we need is not assured. (…) It is not enough to refer to the science and then ignore what the science tells us to do “she continued.“We took a step forward from the status quo, but it was exponential change that we really needed”regretted Anne Rasmussen, applauded at length by many delegates present.
The envoy from the Marshall Islands, a Pacific island, is also critical of the agreement.“I came from my home island to work with all of you to tackle the greatest challenge of our generation. I came here to build a canoe for my country together.”said John Silk during the COP28 plenary session. “Instead, we built a canoe with a weak and leaky hull full of holes. Yet we have to put it in the water because we have no other choice.”, he laments. The minister of this Oceanian archipelago finally emphasizes that climate change is currently eroding the coasts of his state, while nevertheless noting that the agreement concluded today constitutes progress.
Ursula von der Leyen welcomes historic agreement reached at COP28 marking “the beginning of the post-fossil era”. In a message published on X (formerly Twitter), the President of the European Commission notes that“the world has endorsed the EU’s objectives for 2030 : a tripling of renewable energies and a doubling of energy efficiency”welcoming in a separate statement “a powerful demonstration of the value of multilateralism in tackling our planet’s greatest challenges”.
An opinion shared by the German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, who declared that the COP 28 agreement was not “just the starting point” for European Union countries.
Emmanuel Macron greets “an important step” crossed by the agreement adopted at COP28. This text “commits the world to a transition without fossil fuels”while calling for “accelerate” the fight against global warming. The French president also welcomed the recognition of the “key role of nuclear power”, “a first” defended by France, alongside the need for a tripling of renewable energies. His Minister of Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna also welcomed the “consensus on the necessary exit from fossil fuels”, “message of hope for the planet and the most vulnerable”.
Laurent Fabius, French president of COP21, greets a “major agreement, but to be strengthened quickly”. The current president of the Constitutional Council had the much-lauded Paris agreement adopted in 2015, which set itself the most ambitious objective of containing global warming below 1.5°C, compared to the pre -industrial.
Gaïa Fèbvre, from the France Climate Action Network, welcomes the fact that “the agreement voted at COP28 contains a political signal towards the exit from fossil fuels”. However, “the account is not there, according to her_, in particular because the financial means have not been made available to support the countries which need it the most. But also because there are many very worrying mentions: gas as a transition energy, carbon capture and storage or even nuclear power. This COP does not live up to the promised ambitions.”_
For Tasneem Essop,International Climate Action Network is“the first signal ever given that the world needs.However, vulnerable populations and countries cannot be left with the burden of financing this transition to respond to a crisis they did not cause.”
Other observers also commented on the agreement. For former Vice President Al Gore,“It’s the bare minimum what we need and is long overdue. The influence of petrostates is still evident in the half-measures and shortcomings…”
The specialist think tank Climate Analytics speaks of the final agreement as a “blend” : “moving away from fossil fuels” is a “nail in the coffin of this industry”but the energy sector is “too weak”has no“commitments strong enough to bring back” And “there is no commitment for an emissions peak in 2025”.