Following revelations that the president of COP28, Dr Sultan al-Jaber - who is also CEO of the United Arab Emirates state oil company - was planning to be part of a UAE delegation seeking to use the climate talks as an opportunity to strike oil and gas deals with other countries [1], co leader of the Green Party Adrian Ramsay said:
“It was always highly dubious appointing the CEO of a giant state oil company to be COP president. Dr Sultan al-Jaber has now been caught red handed trying to stitch up oil and gas deals when he should be trying to persuade countries to move away from fossil fuels. He is totally inappropriate and has demonstrated himself to be completely compromised. The Green Party calls on him to go and we expect the UK government to do the same – it's a fair cop.”
“One of the main reasons why the world is failing to deal with the climate crisis is because politicians in the UK and across the world are in the pockets of the oil and gas industry. Or in the case of Sultan al-Jaber, they are the oil and gas industry.
“We need a new generation of political leaders who will end our dependence on fossil fuels and create a home grown, renewable energy transformation with all the benefits that will bring for lower bills, new jobs and a safe environment. And the UN now needs to quickly appoint someone as president of COP who has a clear track record on a commitment to climate action."
Notes
1. COP28: UAE planned to use climate talks to make oil deals - BBC News