The Iran war highlights energy dependency, with around 60 countries discussing practical phasing out of fossil fuels
Approximately 60 national governments, including Brazil, Germany, Canada, and Nigeria, will hold their first international conference this week to discuss how to gradually phase out fossil fuels. The ongoing Iran war is disrupting global oil and gas markets and driving continuous increases in energy prices. Rather than announcing new ambitions or commitments, the focus of this meeting is on sharing concrete implementation pathways—such as the financial instruments, regulatory incentives, and planning mechanisms needed to advance the transition away from fossil fuels.
The conference will take place on Tuesday, April 28th, in Santa Marta, Colombia, co-organized by the Netherlands and Colombia. Attendees will include ministers and officials from participating countries. The emphasis is not on setting new global goals akin to those at a UN climate summit, but rather on discussing actionable steps for economies to practically move away from fossil fuels.
Discussion topics also include creating investment conditions for industries shifting from natural gas to electricity, as well as reforming fossil fuel subsidy systems.
This gathering brings together a group of "voluntarily participating" nations, but the world’s two largest emitters—China and the United States—are notably absent, along with Saudi Arabia and other major oil-producing countries in the Middle East.
The Iran war has underscored the vulnerability of many nations to energy dependence. Some Asian economies are experiencing fuel shortages, while Europe faces rapid rises in energy costs.
The Dutch Foreign Minister stated that this energy crisis further illustrates the importance of reducing reliance on oil and natural gas—not only for climate reasons, but also for economic and energy security. She emphasized that the lower the dependence on fossil fuels, the less vulnerable a country becomes overall.
Moreover, the conference reflects growing frustration among some nations regarding the slow pace of progress in the annual UN climate negotiations. These talks involve nearly 200 countries and require consensus-based decisions. While nations agreed at the 2023 COP28 climate summit to move away from fossil fuels, subsequent COP meetings have seen limited progress, with some countries—including Saudi Arabia—having previously obstructed proposals related to fossil fuels.
Source: rfi
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1863660421999626/
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