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[1/2] U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry shakes hands with his Chinese counterpart Xie Zhenhua before a meeting in Beijing, China July 17, 2023. REUTERS/Valerie Volcovici/File PhotoBEIJING/SINGAPORE, July 20 (Reuters) - Climate talks this week between China and the United States were buoyed by goodwill, but the world's two biggest carbon polluters achieved more on righting their diplomatic relationship than battling climate change. Kerry said China agreed that a target to keep global temperatures rises within 1.5 Celsius of pre-industrial levels should remain "alive". Kerry and Xie focussed on progress headed toward COP28, the annual U.N. climate summit in November. Questions remain about the longer term, should political winds shift in the United States or the two diplomats leave their posts.

Persons: John Kerry, Xie Zhenhua, Valerie Volcovici, Kerry, Nancy Pelosi, Antony Blinken, Janet Yellen, Li Shuo, Li, Xie, Ma Jun, Ma, Premier Li Qiang, Wang Yi, David Stanway, William Mallard Organizations: REUTERS, Democratic, GOOD AS IT, China, Greenpeace, Institute of Environment, Public Affairs, Communist Party, Daily, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, BEIJING, SINGAPORE, United States, Washington, U.S, Taiwan, Kerry, Paris, COP28, America, Premier, Dubai

☆ COP28 summit host UAE's climate plans ranked 'insufficient'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Kate Abnett | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, July 20 (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates, host of this year's COP28 UN climate summit, has set out "insufficient" plans to tackle its own contribution to climate change, an independent research group said on Thursday. The UAE strengthened its climate pledge earlier this month to be more ambitious, and its summit leadership has called on other countries to do the same ahead of the talks in November. But the country's new pledge would still see its CO2 emissions increase through to 2030, at odds with the sharp decrease needed to curb climate change, according to the Climate Action Tracker research consortium. Countries agreed under the Paris Agreement to take action to curb climate change to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, the limit scientists say would avoid its most disastrous impacts. But this will not prevent the UAE from busting its overall climate goals, if fossil fuel use does not decrease, CAT said.

Persons: Sultan al, Jaber, Sarah Heck, Kate Abnett, Yousef Saba, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: United, CAT, Analytics, Investments, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, United Arab Emirates, UAE, Paris

☆ Abu Dhabi's Masdar eyeing acquisition targets in US, Europe expansion
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Yousef Saba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DUBAI, July 19 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi state-owned renewable energy firm Masdar is in discussions with potential acquisition targets in the U.S. and is also looking to expand in Europe, Gulf Arab countries and elsewhere, its chief financial officer said on Wednesday. Masdar is in active discussions and U.S. President Joe Biden's $430 billion Inflation Reduction Act "reinforced" its view of the U.S. market, he said. "So we are already securing new capacities, so my expectation is that we are likely to come to market again in 2024," he said, adding Masdar would only issue bonds for already-secured projects. In November, the UAE and U.S. agreed to spend $100 billion on clean energy projects with a goal of adding 100 gigawatts globally by 2035. Jaber last week said countries at COP28 must face how far behind they are lagging climate targets and agree a plan to get on track.

Persons: Niall Hannigan, Joe Biden's, Masdar, Hannigan, Sultan al, Jaber, Yousef Saba, David Evans Organizations: Abu, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Thomson Locations: DUBAI, Abu Dhabi, U.S, Europe, Gulf Arab, North America, Balkans, Poland, Serbia, Montenegro, Greece, Gulf, Saudi Arabia, Asia, Pacific, Africa, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, UAE

☆ COP28 in Dubai: Inside the push to greenwash the next climate summit
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

The country has embarked on a major PR campaign to boost its green credentials ahead of the COP28 UN climate summit in Dubai later this year, prompting heavy criticism from climate groups and some politicians. The controversial road to COPThe climate summit takes place at a different location each year, with responsibility for hosting rotating among five regional groups. But the UAE stands out because of the way it chose to intertwine the summit with its oil business. In January, the UAE announced Sultan Al Jaber would be the summit president, to the horror of many climate groups. The country is “ideally suited to host” the summit, a spokesperson for the COP28 presidency told CNN.

Persons: ”, Jennie King, Sultan Al Jaber, Al Jaber, CNN Al Jaber “, Al Jaber’s, John Kerry, Frans Timmermans, “, ” Al Jaber, It’s, it’s, Al, ADNOC, Marc Owen Jones, Hamad, Jones, King, Cop28, Kat Ainger, ” King Organizations: CNN, United, United Arab Emirates, Centre, Climate, Guardian, Institute for Strategic, Abu, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, US, Associated Press, EU, Hamad bin Khalifa University, Twitter, UAE COP28, UAE Ministry of, Environment, UAE, US Justice Department, Corporate Locations: United Arab, Dubai, UAE, Katowice, Glasgow, Abu Dhabi, Al Jaber, Qatar, Paris, China, India, ”

Earlier this month, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said contributions from Beijing could boost U.N. climate funds. It has, however, signalled a willingness to offer climate finance to developing countries through different instruments, like a South-South Climate Cooperation fund it launched in 2015. And the United States hopes that China will unveil its domestic plans to tackle the issue before the next U.N. climate conference in December. Global emissions levels have only risen since. The United States tends to look at overall national emissions, ignoring both historical emissions and the per-capita breakdown.

Persons: Janet Yellen, Donald Trump's, Joe Biden, John Kerry, Xie Zhenhua, Kerry, Xie, David Stanway, Katy Daigle, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: European Union, Treasury, Climate Cooperation, Technological, Biden, Kerry, Microvast Holdings, Global, European, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, China, United, Beijing, U.S, U.N, Rio de Janeiro, United States, Xinjiang, Paris, Glasgow, 1.5C, European Union, COP28, Dubai, Singapore

☆ Japan and UAE agree innovation, climate change cooperation
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Rachna Uppal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

State news agency WAM also said the two leaders discussed a comprehensive strategic partnership between the UAE and Japan. Japan is actively developing greener and renewable energy technologies and aims to be carbon neutral by 2050. Kishida will also try to promote Japanese know-how as energy-producing countries have pledged to achieve a net zero transition, especially ahead of the COP28 climate summit to be held in Dubai in November. The GCC is a six-nation regional union that comprises Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain. "The secure energy supply from the UAE has supported Japan's economic growth for many years," Kishida wrote in a piece published by UAE state news agency WAM on Sunday.

Persons: Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Kishida, Ryan Carter, Fumio Kishida's, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, WAM, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Hikariko Ono, Rachna Uppal, Sakura Murakami, Andrew Mills, Aziz El Yaakoubi, Conor Humphries, David Evans, Alex Richardson, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: United Arab Emirates, United, UAE, United Arab, Japan, Qatar, Saudi Crown, Cooperation Council, GCC, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Thomson Locations: Japan, Qasr Al Watan, Abu Dhabi, United Arab, ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates, UAE, State, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Tokyo, Saudi, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain

☆ John Kerry to step into searing China heat as world’s two biggest polluters try to fix fractured ties
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( Nectar Gan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

China Energy Investment Corporation, the world’s largest generator of coal-fired power, said its production of electricity reached a historic high on Monday. Kerry, 79, has traveled to China twice since being appointed as US President Joe Biden’s special climate envoy. Li, the Greenpeace analyst, said he would be closely watching who will meet with Kerry in Beijing. That would require the country to phase out coal power, which accounts for about 60% of its total electricity generation. “The expansion of coal is a grave challenge for China’s climate policy,” Li said.

Persons: John Kerry, ”, Li Shuo, Nancy Pelosi’s, ” Li, Andy Wong, Kerry, Biden, Antony Blinken, Xi Jinping, Janet Yellen, China’s Premier Li Qiang, Blinken, Wang Yi, Alex Wang, Joe Biden’s, Xie Zhenhua, Arnd Wiegmann, Li, Xie Jianhua, Ding Xuexiang, Xi, Obama, Xie, ” Kerry, “ I’m, Stringer, Wang, “ It’s, “, ” Wang Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Beijing Sunday, Greenpeace, Washington, US, Taiwan —, China Energy Investment Corporation, China’s Premier, University of California, US State Department, China’s Ministry of Ecology, Economic, Blinken, Kerry, CNN, COP28, UCLA, Global Energy Monitor Locations: Hong Kong, Beijing, United States, China, Greenpeace China, Taiwan, Jakarta, “, Los Angeles, Kerry, Shanghai, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China, Davos, Switzerland, Washington, Paris, China Glasgow, Dubai, Lianyungang, China's, Jiangsu, AFP

☆ John Kerry steps into searing China heat as world’s two biggest polluters try to fix fractured ties
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( Nectar Gan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Persons: John Kerry, ”, Li Shuo, Nancy Pelosi’s, ” Li, Andy Wong, Kerry, Biden, Antony Blinken, Xi Jinping, Janet Yellen, China’s Premier Li Qiang, Blinken, Wang Yi, Alex Wang, Joe Biden’s, Xie Zhenhua, Arnd Wiegmann, Li, Xie Jianhua, Ding Xuexiang, Xi, Obama, Xie, ” Kerry, “ I’m, Stringer, Wang, “ It’s, “, ” Wang Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Greenpeace, Washington, US, Taiwan —, China Energy Investment Corporation, China’s Premier, University of California, US State Department, China’s Ministry of Ecology, Economic, Blinken, Kerry, CNN, COP28, UCLA, Global Energy Monitor Locations: Hong Kong, Beijing, United States, China, Greenpeace China, Taiwan, Jakarta, “, Los Angeles, Kerry, Shanghai, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China, Davos, Switzerland, Washington, Paris, China Glasgow, Dubai, Lianyungang, China's, Jiangsu, AFP

☆ 'Under no circumstances': John Kerry rules out U.S. paying climate reparations to low-income countries
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. climate envoy John Kerry ruled out paying into a global fund to help poorer nations stricken by the devastating impacts of the climate emergency, saying that "under no circumstances" would the White House consider delivering on reparations. It comes at a time when countries acutely vulnerable to climate-fueled disasters are pushing for wealthy nations — that have the greatest historic responsibility for the climate crisis — to pay for past greenhouse gas emissions. It remains unclear, however, exactly how much richer countries will pay into the fund. Climate reparations is a highly divisive and emotive issue that is seen as a fundamental question of climate justice. Asked during a hearing before a House of Representatives foreign affairs oversight subcommittee on Thursday whether he intended for the U.S. to pay climate reparations, Kerry replied, "No, under no circumstances."

Persons: John Kerry, Kerry, Brian Mast

REUTERS/Kim... Read moreLONDON/WASHINGTON, July 10 (Reuters) - When it comes to taking stock of global emissions, there's an elephant in the room: the world's armed forces. NATO, the 31-country Western security alliance, for example, told Reuters it has created a methodology for its members to report their military emissions. And Washington sent U.S. Army and Navy representatives to the COP27 climate summit in Egypt last year, the first time a Pentagon delegation has attended the global climate summit. Ukraine's environment ministry spokesperson said it supports the efforts and would seek backing from governments at COP28 for more transparent military emissions reporting. In the meantime, global military emissions will remain poorly understood, said Stuart Parkinson, executive director of the group Scientists for Global Responsibility.

Persons: Kim, Queen Mary, Axel Michaelowa, Meredith Berger, Neta Crawford, Deborah Burton, Lennard, Klerk, James Appathurai, Markus Ruelke, Stuart Parkinson, Sarah McFarlane, Valerie Volcovici, Sabine Siebold, Richard Valdmanis, David Clarke Organizations: REUTERS, Observatory, United Arab Emirates, UNFCCC, COP28, NATO, Reuters, Washington, U.S . Army, Pentagon, U.S . Navy, The, U.S . Defence Logistics Agency, U.S . Department of Defense, Oxford University, Oxford, Queen Mary University of London, Scientists, Global, Thomson Locations: South Korea, U.S, Pocheon, WASHINGTON, Kyoto, Paris, Lancaster, Oxford, Dubai, UAE, Zealand, Britain, Germany, Egypt, The U.S, Afghanistan, Iraq, Ukraine, Singapore, Switzerland, Syria, COP28, Berlin

☆ Biden due to meet King Charles, PM Sunak during brief UK visit
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( Michael Holden | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, July 8 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden will arrive in Britain on Sunday for a brief visit during which he will meet British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and discuss climate change issues with King Charles ahead of the upcoming NATO summit. Sunak's spokesperson said their discussions would likely include the upcoming NATO summit and Ukraine. The president and the king are due to discuss climate issues, a subject on which Charles, 74, has campaigned and spoken out about for more than five decades. When the two men met at the COP26 U.N. climate summit in Scotland two years ago, Biden praised Charles' leadership on the subject, telling him "We need you badly". Following the meeting, Biden and Sunak leave Britain for Lithuania where NATO leaders will gather for a key summit.

Persons: Joe Biden, Rishi Sunak, King Charles, Sunak, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, Donald Trump, Biden, Queen Elizabeth, Barack Obama, Charles, Michael Holden, Muvija, Helen Popper Our Organizations: British, NATO, Downing, California's Stanford University, Biden, European Union, Trump, Nordic, Thomson Locations: Britain, Washington, Ukraine, United States, Santa Monica, Windsor, London, Scotland, Lithuania, Helsinki

☆ Leonardo DiCaprio Is the Most Trusted Authority on the Climate Crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Americans named Leonardo DiCaprio the most trustworthy climate authority in an online survey. The climate crisis and the movie "Titanic" have at least one thing in common: They've been the subject of passionate debates for decades. In an online survey, Americans named Leonardo DiCaprio the most trustworthy famous authority on climate change and other environmental issues. In 2021, DiCaprio starred in "Don't Look Up," a film that satirizes how powerful politicians, corporations, and the media have responded to the climate crisis. The film is part of a recent shift in how the climate crisis is portrayed on TV and in movies, Navaratnam-Blair said.

Persons: Leonardo DiCaprio, They've, Jack could've, DiCaprio, Greta Thunberg, Al Gore, Dwayne, Johnson, Joe Biden, Fergus Navaratnam, Blair, Navaratnam, BuzzFeed, Page, Jennifer Lawrence, Gore Organizations: National Research Group, National Research, Hollywood, Earth Alliance Locations: Hollywood, Glasgow, Scotland

☆ 'We need to be practical,' UAE energy minister says ahead of COP28
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email'We need to be practical,' UAE energy minister says ahead of COP28“We need to be practical,” UAE’s Minister for Energy and Infrastructure Suhail Al Mazrouei tells CNBC’s Dan Murphy ahead of the COP28 climate summit.

Persons: Al Mazrouei, CNBC’s Dan Murphy Organizations: Energy, Infrastructure Locations: UAE, COP28

☆ U.S. Companies Face EU Deforestation Rules on Coffee, Wood and Other Everyday Goods
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Dieter Holger | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

The nonprofit estimates at least 37 big U.S.-based companies, including Starbucks and Kellogg, will be covered by the new rules. Trees absorb carbon dioxide, and forest loss and damage has caused around 10% of global warming, according to nonprofit World Wildlife Fund. The EU rules apply to companies meeting the bloc’s broad definition of an “operator,” which includes a business importing into the EU, exporting from it, or putting products on the bloc’s market. The EU rules are expected to become stricter over time. Sen. Brian Schatz, a Hawaii Democrat who is spearheading the effort, said the U.S. needs to follow the EU in enacting deforestation regulations on trade.

Persons: haven’t, “, Starling, —, Kellogg, ” Frans Timmermans, Guillaume Croisant, Sen, Brian Schatz, ”, Dieter Holger Organizations: European Union, EU, Global, Starbucks, Kellogg, Labs, Airbus, Companies, World Resources Institute, Consumer Goods, New, World Wildlife Fund, Cargill, Bunge, Sustainable Business, Barclays, Hawaii Democrat, dieter.holger Locations: European, Brazil, Indonesia, Malaysia, New York, Brussels, Linklaters, U.S, Hawaii, Europe

☆ China is set to shatter its wind and solar target five years early, new report finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Caolán Magee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —China is on track to double its wind and solar energy capacity and hit its 2030 clean energy targets five years early, a new report has found. Solar capacity in China is now greater than the rest of the world combined. “China is rapidly and successfully scaling up its deployment of renewable power and has become the largest investor into renewables globally. This is both a cause and consequence of rapidly falling costs of renewable energy as compared to coal power,” he said. Tsang hopes that relative cheapness of renewable energy will persuade China to kick its coal habit.

Persons: Dorothy Mei, ” Martin Weil, Xi, Greg Baker, Byford Tsang, ”, Tsang Organizations: CNN, Global Energy Monitor, Center for Research, Energy, Clean Air, Getty, IEA Locations: China, Beijing, AFP, ERG

☆ Tree Loss Increases in Crucial Tropical Forests
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Manuela Andreoni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

More than a year after countries pledged to end deforestation by 2030, the world is continuing to lose its tropical forests at a fast pace, according to a report issued on Tuesday. It is the first assessment to cover a full year since November 2021, when 145 countries pledged at a global climate summit in Glasgow to halt forest loss by the end of this decade. “We had hoped by now to see a signal in the data that we were turning the corner on forest loss,” Francis Seymour, a senior fellow at the institute’s forest program, said. “We don’t see that signal yet, and in fact we’re headed in the wrong direction.”The report, done in collaboration with the University of Maryland, documented tree loss in the tropics from deforestation, fires and other causes. Last year’s destruction resulted in 2.7 gigatons of carbon dioxide emissions, a significant amount that is roughly equivalent to the annual fossil fuel emissions of India, a country of 1.4 billion.

Persons: “, ” Francis Seymour, we’re Organizations: World Resources Institute, University of Maryland Locations: Glasgow, India

☆ Rainforest destruction soared in 2022 despite global pledges to halt deforestation, new report finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Caolán Magee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —The destruction of the world’s rainforests ramped up last year, despite global pledges to end deforestation by 2030, according to a new report. The country’s rate of forest loss rose 15% from 2021 to 2022. Bolivia saw a record-high level of primary forest loss last year, with a 32% increase compared to 2021. It came in third behind only Brazil and the Democratic Republic of the Congo for area of primary forest loss, the report found. Despite the global increase in deforestation, there has been a sharp reduction in forest loss in Indonesia and loss levels in Malaysia have remained low, according to the report.

Persons: Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Gustavo Moreno, Jair Bolsonaro’s, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Boris Johnson, Jane Barlow, Rod Taylor, ” Organizations: CNN, World Resources, Watch, University of Maryland, Democratic, UN, WRI’s Locations: Switzerland, Brazil, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Bolivia, Democratic Republic of, Congo, Glasgow, Indonesia, Malaysia

☆ Pro Take: Forget the SEC, International Climate Reporting Standards Could Become the Global Baseline
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Rochelle Toplensky | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +8 min

New international sustainability reporting standards could fulfill their ambition in becoming the global baseline as the advantages of using a single standard worldwide may, for many companies, outweigh the disadvantages of being more demanding than the SEC’s coming climate reporting rules. On Monday, the International Sustainability Standards Board released its initial two reporting standards. PREVIEWDespite the strong demand for one standard, U.S. and European Union officials are each developing their own climate reporting regimes. It is now up to individual countries and jurisdictions to decide if and when they will adopt the ISSB standards. Sue Lloyd, vice chair of the International Sustainability Standards Board, at the launch of the inaugural sustainability standards.

Persons: Sue Lloyd, ”, Brian Moynihan, Lloyd, Um, Lysanne Gray, Eelco van der Enden, Jean, Paul Servais, Benoit Doppagne, Iosco, Unilever’s Gray, Rochelle Toplensky, Amplifications Iosco Organizations: Sustainability, Task Force, Sustainable Business, European Union, International Organization of Securities Commissions, Securities, Exchange Commission, U.S, Wall Street, Bank of America, London Stock Exchange, Asian Development Bank, Unilever, Alignment, Global, Initiative, Belgian Financial Services, Markets, FSMA, Zuma Press, Accounting, Rochelle, wsj.com Corrections, Amplifications Locations: EU, Australia, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Singapore, Glasgow, Monday’s, Egypt, Africa, Asia, U.S

The World Bank and others also said they would start adding clauses to lending terms that allow vulnerable states to suspend debt repayments when natural disaster strikes. Specifically, for the first time, the document acknowledged the potential need for richer countries to provide fresh money to multilateral development institutions like the World Bank. Another first was in the explicit target for multilateral development banks to leverage "at least" $100 billion a year in private sector capital when they lend. All eyes now turn to more traditional events later in the year, including the International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings, a G20 meeting in September and the COP28 climate talks in Dubai. Persaud said his focus would be on making sure the plan to scale up multilateral development bank lending was in place by the time of annual meetings in October, and that pilot work began on reducing the cost of capital for developing countries.

Persons: Macron, Mia Mottley, Avinash Persaud, What's, Persaud, Teresa Anderson, They've, Sonia Dunlop, Simon Jessop, Leigh Thomas, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Global, Pact, Reuters, World Bank, International Maritime Organisation, Paris Summit, Climate Justice, ActionAid, International Monetary Fund, Bank, Thomson Locations: Barbados, PARIS, Bridgetown, Zambia, Paris, Dubai

☆ Kerry meets Pope Francis privately, says he's in great form and spirits
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( Philip Pullella | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry arrives for an interview with Reuters after meeting with Pope Francis, near the Vatican, in Rome, Italy, June 19, 2023. REUTERS/Guglielmo MangiapaneVATICAN CITY, June 19 (Reuters) - U.S. climate envoy John Kerry met Pope Francis on Monday, the first official to have a private audience with him since his discharge from hospital, and told Reuters that he found the pontiff "in great spirits and in great form". "He was in great spirits and great form ... "I found the pope to be very much the pope that I have had the privilege of seeing several times over the last years. He seemed in very good form and good spirits," Kerry, 79, said in an interview in front of St. Peter's Square.

Persons: John Kerry, Pope Francis, Guglielmo Mangiapane, Francis, Kerry, Laudato, Philip Pullella, Toby Chopra, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, CITY, United, Thomson Locations: Rome, Italy, St, Paris, COP28, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, United Nations, Berlin

Carbon accounting will be in focus at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai this year as countries assess progress against climate goals agreed in Paris in 2015, and de Klerk said it was crucial military emissions were included. "Emissions of conflicts and military emissions are often overlooked," he told Reuters. The report - Climate Damage Caused By Russia's War in Ukraine - was funded by the European Climate Foundation and the Environmental Policy and Advocacy Initiative in Ukraine. HARD TO DECIPHERUkraine's Ministry of Environmental Protection said it was important to initiate discussions about the impact of conflicts on the climate. Government reporting of military and conflict emissions to the United Nations is notoriously hard to decipher.

Persons: Alexander Ermochenko LONDON, Lennard, Klerk, it's, de Klerk, James Appathurai, of Environmental Protection, Bremer, Sarah McFarlane, Valerie Volcovici, Richard Valdmanis, David Clarke Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, European Climate Foundation, Environmental, Initiative, Environment Observatory, of Environmental, United Nations, Brown University, International Institute for Applied Systems, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Shakhtarsk, Donetsk, Russian, Bonn, Belgium, Europe, Hungary, Dubai, Paris, U.S, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Kuwait, Britain

☆ Analysis: Egypt faces external debt reckoning after borrowing spree
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Patrick Werr | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Amid a foreign currency crunch, Egypt has drawn down net foreign assets in the banking system by more than $40 billion in two years, partly used to prop up the pound. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsReuters GraphicsFINDING FOREIGN FUNDSTwo of Egypt's main foreign currency streams, tourism and Suez Canal transit fees, have edged up. The hard currency squeeze has raised concerns about Egypt's ability to repay foreign debt. Those repayments to the IMF and foreign bond holders alone, worth about $4.5 billion, amount to more than half the annual $8 billion Egypt earns from the Suez Canal. Egypt's external loans leapt to $162.9 billion by December 2022 from under $40 billion in 2015, central bank data showed.

Persons: snubbing, Monica Malik, Moustafa Madbouly, Moody's, politican Abdel Fattah al, Sisi, Farouk Soussa, Goldman Sachs, Patrick Werr, Sumanta Sen, Aidan Lewis, Edmund Blair Organizations: Investors, International Monetary Fund, Finance, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Reuters, Reasssured, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Thomson Locations: CAIRO, Egypt, snubbing Egypt, Ukraine, Abu Dhabi, Suez, Cairo, Stockholm

☆ UAE oil chief is ‘the perfect person’ to lead UN climate talks, COP28 director general says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The UAE will host the COP28 climate summit from Nov. 30 through to Dec. 12. The director general of COP28 on Thursday defended the appointment of oil executive Sultan al-Jaber, describing the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company CEO as the "perfect person" to lead the climate talks. The UAE, the third-largest oil-producing member of the OPEC alliance, will host the COP28 climate summit from Nov. 30 through to Dec. 12. Asked by CNBC's Dan Murphy to respond to the calls to remove al-Jaber as president-designate of the summit, COP28 Director General Majid al-Suwaidi said: "This is a discussion that we've seen a lot in the media. "As the UAE we've been really focused on how do we deliver the results we need for COP28 and I know that Dr. Sultan is the perfect person to do that.

Persons: Sultan al, Jaber, COP28, Joe Biden, Ursula von der Leyen, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, CNBC's Dan Murphy, Majid al, Suwaidi, we've, —, they're, Sultan Organizations: Abu, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, European, United, U.S, UAE we've Locations: UAE, COP28, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

☆ In the Bahamas, a Constant Race to Adapt to Climate Change
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-24 | by ( David Gelles | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

At the United Nations climate summit in Egypt last year, Prime Minister Philip Davis of the Bahamas emerged as one of the most impassioned speakers among the more than 100 heads of state in attendance. “We have to believe that a safer, better future is possible,” he told the gathering. Nicole slammed into what Mr. Davis called “the most beautiful country on earth,” as a Category 1 hurricane before moving on to the United States. The storm ended up inflicting more than $1 billion in damage on vulnerable communities. It was yet another reminder that the Bahamas is uniquely threatened by the effects of climate change.

Persons: Philip Davis of, ”, Davis, Storm Nicole, Nicole Organizations: United, New York Times Locations: United Nations, Egypt, Bahamas, United States, Busan, South Korea

☆ Factbox: Then and now: How Arab states changed course on Syria
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

May 19 (Reuters) - President Bashar al-Assad's attendance at an Arab Summit in Saudi Arabia on Friday is the result of big policy shifts by Arab states that once backed his opponents in Syria's civil war. The support was a point of rivalry with another Gulf Arab state, Qatar, which backed Islamist groups espousing ideologies viewed with suspicion by Riyadh. It also worked with the United States in a programme to support rebels deemed moderate by Washington. As some Arab states changed course on Assad, notably the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia showed no sign of bringing him in from the cold. Like other Arab states, Saudi Arabia is also expecting Assad to curb the trade in narcotics smuggled out of Syria.

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