A draft agreement at the COP30 UN climate change conference does not include a roadmap to phase out the use of fossil fuels, and does not even include the term, according to reports. File Photo by Ali Haider/EPA
A draft agreement between nearly 200 countries at the COP30 conference to address climate change does not mention fossil fuels, which are the largest contributor to the problem.
The first version of the draft, released earlier this week included a roadmap for the “transition away from fossil fuels,” but the final draft published Friday does not include the road map, let alone the term “fossil fuels.”
COP30 is a meeting of United Nations countries, held this year in Belem, Brazil, to discuss how to address global climate change and formulate a plan to stop, or at least mitigate, its effects.
According to the BBC, Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern, as well as Russia and India, countries whose economies depend on either the sale or significant use of fossil fuels, are blocking a deal on reducing their use.
Some countries opposed to fossil fuel section threatened to walk out of the talks, which have been going on for two weeks.
Brazil, Britain and at least 27 other countries sent a letter to the COP30 president, a Brazilian official, threatening to block any final deal that does not include a commitment to phase out fossil fuels, The Guardian reported.
“We express deep concern regarding the current proposal under consideration for a take it or leave it,” the letter said. “We cannot support an outcome that does not include a roadmap for implementing a just, orderly and equitable transition away from fossil fuels.”
At COP28 in Dubai in 2023, leaders reached a deal to transition away from the use of fossil fuels, a key step toward implementing the 2015 Paris Agreement, which U.S. President Donald Trump has twice pulled the United States out of.
Although the deal did not call for phasing out use of all fossil fuels, but rather rapid, sustained cuts in greenhouse gas emission over the course of a slow turn from them in order to reach net zero by 2050.
The deal, however, did not include a timeline or methods for how the goal was going to be achieved.
Last year, at COP29, the commitment to work toward net zero emissions failed to be reconfirmed.
Frustration over the lack of a commitment to start phasing out fossil fuels has grown, but the potential for a deal exists, Catherine Abreu, director of the International Climate Politics Hub, told The Guardian.
“It’s clear that a growing group won’t leave Belem without an ambitious package deal,” Abreu said. “The question is whether the Brazil presidency will choose to listen to them, with time running out [on the meeting.”
Trump hosts Saudi crown prince for White House dinner
President Donald Trump stands with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a black tie dinner at the White House in Washington, on November 18, 2025. Photo by Anna Rose Layden/UPI | License Photo
