During the first day of the COP28 Climate Summit, millions of dollars in donations are putting pressure on wealthy countries, such as China, to make pledges to help address the issue.
The UN climate summit kicked off on Thursday with a slew of nations contributing to help poorer countries cope with the effects of global warming. This was seen as a surprise development.
COP28 Climate Summit Donations
The nation that led the charge is the oil-rich host of the summit, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which made a $100 million pledge. The contribution defused months of criticism about whether or not it could properly serve as an honest broker in talks about addressing fossil fuel dependence worldwide.
One made by Germany matched the UAE's pledge and kicked off a series of contributions from other nations. The development marked a remarkable opening day for the 28th annual COP conference. The European Union said it would be giving at least $245 million, including Germany's, for the fund, as per Politico.
On the other hand, the United Kingdom added $50 million, while the United States pledged $17.5 million. The UAE suddenly received praise over its massive donation as EU climate envoy Wopke Hoekstra expressed her gratitude to the nation for "leading the way for new donors."
Hoekstra added that because of the EU's efforts, the fund is open to contributions from all parties that can provide resources. The climate envoy's comment clearly indicated that the pledge transcended a decades-old divide in climate talks between "developed" and "developing" countries.
This is particularly true regarding financial matters, and many activists and climate-vulnerable countries have long argued that wealthy, industrialized nations are responsible for most of the planet's warming emissions. They also demanded for these countries to take responsibility and take the lead on funding climate action.
Despite the relatively good news on the first day of the climate summit, the US is criticized for its "embarrassing" amount of money contributed. For years, the demand for a fund to channel money to developing countries stymied progress at yearly negotiations, according to CNN.
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Addressing Climate Change
Earlier this month, the details of the fund were agreed upon at a pre-COP meeting and formalized on Thursday. The development was made in the hopes that it would allow for progress in other areas at the summit.
In a statement, COP28 President Sultan Al Jaber said that they have delivered history following the massive contribution of the UAE. He noted that it was the first time a decision had been adopted on the first day of any COP conference.
While the pledges mark a historic moment for the climate summit, world leaders still cannot agree on stopping the burning of fossil fuels even after 27 years of conferences. Scientists say this particular resource is the main driver of climate change worldwide.
Additionally, the COP28 event is being hosted in the UAE, a country that is increasing its oil production. It has also been accused of using its position as the summit host to strike oil and gas deals with other nations, said the New York Times.
