These were the EU’s goals at COP27

Charles Michel, President of the European Council at the COP27 conference (Photo: www.consilium.europa.eu)

In his speech at the COP27 plenary session, President Charles Michel stressed the need for urgent action on climate change, while acknowledging that Russia’s war against Ukraine has made the situation more complicated. In this context, President Charles Michel pointed out that the EU’s commitment to climate neutrality remains strong, despite the challenges caused by the energy crisis, which was further aggravated by Russia’s use of energy supply as a weapon.

“The EU is and will remain a frontrunner for climate protection. We are determined to protect nature, the oceans and the forests that make up the lungs of the Earth, which together ensure human life and biodiversity on Earth.”

In addition, the President stated that the EU must shoulder its share of the burden of the transition to net zero greenhouse gas emissions, and that our climate action has obligations to three parties: developing countries, the next generation and citizens. . In view of Russia’s war against Ukraine and the new geopolitical situation, Charles Michel confirmed that the EU’s objective remains the same (namely climate neutrality by 2050 and net zero emissions), but we need to rethink the transition strategy and to ensure security of supply, the energy sources that facilitate the transition we must rely on its full range and strive for diversification as much as possible.

Objectives of COP27

The 2022 climate change conference had four main objectives:
• Mitigation: maintaining the goal that global warming does not exceed a 1.5 °C rise compared to pre-industrial average temperatures
• Adaptation: implementation of a stronger global action program aimed at adapting to climate change
• Financing: an overview of progress towards the goal of $100 billion a year for developing countries to address the adverse effects of climate change by 2025
• Cooperation: guaranteeing adequate representation of all relevant parties, especially vulnerable communities, at the COP27 conference

The EU position represented at the COP27 conference

The position to be represented by the EU as a whole was adopted by the Council on October 24, 2022. In its conclusions on this matter, the Council emphasized: in order to keep the 1.5 °C goal achievable, the level of global ambition must be significantly increased. In addition, he advocated the following:
• nationally defined contributions must be collectively confirmed
• all parties must phase out carbon use without emissions reductions and end useless fossil fuel subsidies
• all countries should make more efforts to mobilize finance to support climate action
The EU is also committed to working with all parties to:
• promoting the debate on the future of the UNFCCC
• discussing how climate action can be implemented in a sustainable way in the agricultural sector
• enabling the implementation of the Glasgow Work Program on Climate Action
• handling the gender dimension

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