According to a BBC investigation, COP28 chairman Sultan Al Jaber, who is also the head of an oil company, wanted to use his role at the COP to make fossil fuel deals.
A spokesman for COP28, which will take place from 30 November to 12 December in Dubai, retorted that "the documents referred to in the BBC article are inaccurate and have not been used by COP28 at any meeting". "It is extremely disappointing that the BBC is using unverified documents," the spokesman added.
The investigation is based on documents gathered by journalists from the Center for Climate Reporting (CCR). The documents, whose authenticity CCR insists it has verified, were obtained through an "informant" who has remained anonymous for fear of reprisals, CCR said.
They consist of a 150-page compilation of briefings prepared by the COP28 team for meetings with Sultan Al Jaber between July and October 2023. The documents were prepared by the Emirates' COP28 team for meetings with at least 27 foreign governments ahead of the summit. They include "talking points" such as one to China that Adnoc wants to "jointly assess international opportunities" in LNG in Mozambique, Canada and Australia.
The UAE team did not dispute the use of the COP28 meetings for business discussions and argued that "private meetings are private".
According to Kaysa Kosonen, policy coordinator at Greenpeace International, the summit "should be dedicated to advancing climate solutions in a non-partisan way, not backroom deals that fuel the crisis." "This is exactly the kind of conflict of interest we feared when the CEO of an oil company was appointed to this post," she added.
The choice of the head of Emirati oil company Adnoc as COP28 chair has already been heavily criticised by environmentalists.
"If these allegations are true, this is completely unacceptable and a real scandal," Greenpeace responded in a press release three days before the UN climate conference opened. /BGNES
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