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BELEM, Brazil \u2013 The UN climate conference COP30 in Brazil has officially gone into overtime, with no deal on the table at the close of Nov 21, the supposed end of the two-week conference.<\/p>\n
As countries continue to lock horns over a laundry list of issues \u2013 a key one being a stronger commitment to phase out fossil fuels \u2013 Singapore\u2019s Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said in an interview that the Republic is still hopeful that countries will come to a consensus. <\/p>\n
She added that leaving the conference with some agreement is better than none. This comes as other parties <\/p>\n refused to back down<\/p>\n <\/a> on their stance on fossil fuels, with some saying that \u201cno deal is better than a bad deal\u201d.<\/p>\n A member of the European Parliament\u2019s delegation to COP30, Mr Bas Eickhout, said on Nov 21 that the \u201cfailure to reach an agreement on a road map to transition away from fossil fuels would not only be a big win for petrostates, but also for Trump and his hard-right allies\u201d. <\/p>\n At a press conference that morning led by Colombia, Panama’s special representative for climate change Juan Carlos Moneterrey Gomez said: \u201cFailing to name the causes of the climate crisis is not compromise. It\u2019s denial. It\u2019s criminal.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, France\u2019s Ecological Transition Minister Monique Barbut told AFP that the fossil fuel-dependent economies of Russia, Saudi Arabia and India, along with many emerging countries, are against the phase-out.<\/p>\n Speaking to Singapore media less than two hours before the talks were due to officially wrap up on Nov 21, Ms Fu said the feedback from different negotiating groups has been \u201cvery strong\u201d, adding: \u201cWe still have some work to do, as far as I can see.\u201d<\/p>\n Calling the debate over fossil fuels \u201cone of the most contentious issues right now\u201d, she said Singapore is prepared to stay with the status quo where no road map to phase out fossil fuels is mentioned in the final conference outcome, as this will help overcome the deadlock.<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t really have much skin in this game, because in general, we are agreeing on decarbonisation, and we are agreeing that we need to decarbonise our power sector,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n For Singapore, a deal is still important at this point in time, she said. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s so important for us to show that COP is relevant, and that COP remains the only place and the place for all parties around the world to have that discussion,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n \u201cSo for me, we will try as much as possible to land and to land at a good place.\u201d<\/p>\n At COP30, one of the closely watched issues is how fossil fuels \u2013 the burning of which is the main driver of modern climate change \u2013 will be referenced in the final outcome.<\/p>\n Despite being at the heart of the climate crisis, fossil fuels are historically <\/p>\n one of the most contentious issues<\/p>\n <\/a> at the annual conferences. <\/p>\n For one thing, it took nearly three decades\u2019 worth of UN climate talks before countries finally committed, for the first time, to transitioning away from the planet-warming power sources in 2023. <\/p>\n This commitment appeared to waver in 2024, with the need to transition away from fossil fuels disappearing from the final text at COP29, hosted by the fossil fuel-dependent economy of Azerbaijan.<\/p>\n Observer groups, non-governmental organisations and more than 80 governments were hopeful that COP30 will refocus global attention on the need to phase out coal, oil and gas. <\/p>\n Brazil\u2019s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had reignited such talks ahead of the climate conference, when he called on world leaders to draw up road maps to overcome a dependence on fossil fuels.<\/p>\n But in the latest version of the negotiation texts released in the wee hours of Nov 21, all references to fossil fuels had been scrubbed.<\/p>\n At least 29 countries have threatened to block the agreement if it did not commit to phasing out fossil fuels, British media outlet The Guardian reported.<\/p>\n Other key issues on the table include how much finance should be channelled from developed countries to developing ones, especially in terms of helping them <\/p>\n finance adaptation efforts<\/p>\n <\/a> to protect their people and infrastructure from escalating climate impacts. <\/p>\n There was unhappiness among developing countries after a revised version of the deal mentioned that developed nations should make \u201cefforts\u201d to triple the amount of adaptation finance they provide to developing countries from 2025 levels by 2030. Such language is seen to be weaker than the original text \u201curging\u201d developed countries to do so, as it confers less obligation on the richer nations.<\/p>\n Ms Fu said that as a member of the Alliance of Small Island States \u2013 one of 16 negotiating groups at the summit \u2013 the Republic will support developing nations in their request for more resources on adaptation finance.<\/p>\n In a press conference, the alliance said cash-strapped developing countries on the front lines of climate change are forced to pump a growing share of their domestic resources into adaptation, in part because of barriers to tapping international funds.<\/p>\n An ideal deal for Singapore would involve mentions of accountability for climate goals, public finance for developing countries as they face difficulties raising funds, and stronger action to help the world adapt to the impacts of climate change, added Ms Fu.<\/p>\n Parties were prepared to talk to resolve the deadlock on adaptation, she said. \u201cI think that\u2019s always a positive sign.\u201d <\/p>\n The deadlock in negotiations is but the latest hiccup to hit the summit, with delegates having had to endure over the last two weeks faulty air-conditioning, a security breach when protesters stormed the venue, and even a blaze that on Nov 20 burned a hole through the roof of the venue, sparking a full evacuation. <\/p>\n Still, progress has been made on certain fronts, with Singapore set to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Brazil that will pave the way for the South American country to sell carbon credits to the Republic.<\/p>\n The signing \u2013 which will be the second such MOU Singapore inks at COP30 <\/p>\n after an earlier one with Malawi<\/p>\n