The US and EU have reiterated their support for the UAE and its efforts to combat climate change, after some left-wing European and American legislators raised concerns over the coming Cop28 summit in Dubai.
A letter signed by a number of members of the US Congress and the European Parliament called for the influence of oil and gas lobbyists to be curbed at this year's climate talks.
The signatories include US progressives, Brussels politicians, clean energy lobbyists-turned-candidates and several other political figures with a track record of criticising Gulf countries.
“The UAE is a crucial partner in advancing our joint efforts to combat the climate crisis, including through their Cop28 leadership.”
The official said President Joe Biden’s administration was “optimistic that we can collectively rise to meet the challenge of the climate crisis and build the clean energy economy of the future”.
Nicholas Lyons, Lord Mayor of London, said: “I think it's going to be a great Cop. The UAE has been extraordinarily methodical in how they've gone about it.
“It's really timely this is being hosted by a hydrocarbon economy and it's being chaired by someone who chairs a hydrocarbon company with a background as the chief executive of a renewable technology company.
“This whole issue is extraordinarily complicated and the truth is that there is going to be an element of hydrocarbon in the global energy mix for the next couple of decades.
“I think that gives the UAE presidency the authority and the licence to say to others that, if you are going to be part of this, demonstrate to us your journey of transition.”
Frans Timmermans, the EU’s top negotiator on climate change, said “vilifying and ignoring” private energy concerns would not help the green transition. “If we want the energy transition to succeed, we have to get the energy companies on board,” Mr Timmermans said.
Chris Hayward, the policy leader of the City of London, said he believed Cop28 would be “very productive”. He praised the UAE for “reaching out to developing countries and trying to bring a more sophisticated finance package to them”.
He added : “I think that the UAE is right to bring in these countries because net zero and climate action mean different things to different countries and different people.”
Former UK minister David Jones argued that criticism of UAE hosting Cop28 came from developed nations that had a “haughty and superior attitude” towards other countries.
In fact, in the UAE companies such as Masdar are very much involved in developing alternative sources of energy. Given the UAE’s background in energy, it is a country with an informed view that would make it a very good host for this climate event.
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