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Their agreement to talk again about climate thawed relations frozen earlier this year after U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi angered China by visiting Taiwan. Teresa Ribera, Spain's climate minister, said she was hopeful that the rapprochement would energise negotiations. “This unequivocal signal from the two largest economies to work together to address the climate crisis is more than welcome; it’s essential," Bapna said. Heading into the last week of the two-week conference progress has been slow, frustrating negotiators who are struggling to find consensus on how rich countries should help developing nations meet the cost of climate-fuelled disasters. The outcome on that issue, referred to in climate talks as "loss and damage", could define the perceived success or failure of the COP27 talks.

☆ The world is watching us, says COP27 president, eyeing climate deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Egypt's COP27 President Sameh Shoukry told the climate summit on Monday that he wanted a comprehensive climate deal with "meaningful outcomes" agreed by Friday and reminded delegates that the world was watching the talks. "Our common objective is to adopt consensus decisions and conclusions on Friday that will constitute comprehensive, ambitious and balanced outcomes of the Sharm el-Sheikh conference," he told delegates. "It is now up to us all here to rise to the occasion and respond to the demands and calls from our communities around the world. We will accept no less than meaningful outcomes at COP27. "Time is not on our side and the world is watching.

☆ COP27 considering loss and damage fund among other finance options - draft text
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Nov 14 (Reuters) - The United Nations on Monday published a draft text setting out what the COP27 climate summit could agree on the subject of 'loss and damage' financing for countries being ravaged by climate impacts. The draft text, which could change before it is adopted at the conclusion of the summit and in places contained multiple options, included a reference to the establishment of a new U.N.-administered fund. The document said: "Arrangements for funding for responding to loss and damage may include:a) A new fit-for-purpose fund under the UNFCCC;b) An operating entity of the Financial Mechanism;c) The strengthening of existing operating entities of the Financial Mechanism, recognizing their governance/governing instruments;d) Public finance, including in the form of grants;e) Grant-based funding from multiple sources;f) Development finance;g) Debt reliefh) Reform of multilateral development banks and international financial institutions;i) Humanitarian assistance;j) Innovative sources of funding;"Reporting by William James; editing by Dominic EvansOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Uganda’s President Museveni slams ‘Western double standards’ over Germany coal mine plans
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni has slammed Western countries over what he calls a “reprehensible double standard” in their response to the energy crisis brought about by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In September, Russia which had come under a raft of Western sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine, halted gas supplies to Europe, leaving the region that was dependent on Russian oil and gas imports scampering for alternatives. But Europe’s largest economy has now been forced to prioritize energy security over clean energy as gas supplies from Russia froze. Just like Germany, many other European countries are reviving coal projects as alternatives to Russian energy. Making ‘a mockery’ of climate targetsMuseveni, 78, says Europe’s switch to coal-based power generation “makes a mockery” of the West’s climate targets.

☆ Analysis: In final week of COP27 climate talks, success hinges on 'loss and damage'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Kate Abnett | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

[1/2] People pass in front of a wall lit with the sign of COP27 as the COP27 climate summit takes place, at the Green Zone in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt November 10, 2022. Some negotiators and observers warn that failure to agree on such "loss and damage" funding could sour the U.N. talks and thwart other deals. At last year's U.N. climate summit all countries agreed to set tougher climate targets this year to keep average global temperature rises to the 1.5C limit that scientists say would avoid global warming’s worst impacts. A relaunch of U.S.-China collaboration on climate change, which China halted earlier this year, could help boost negotiations at COP27. Germany and a group of climate-vulnerable countries launched a "Global Shield" scheme on Monday to attempt to improve insurance for climate disaster-prone countries.

☆ Egyptian-British hunger striker's family say they received 'proof of life' letter
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

CAIRO, Nov 14 (Reuters) - The sister of Egyptian-British activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah said on Monday the family had received a letter from prison that served as "proof of life" from the hunger striker. Since then his family and his lawyer had made repeated trips to the prison where he is detained northwest of Cairo, but had received no news on his condition. Since he obtained British citizenship in December, British officials have sought unsuccessfully to secure consular access to Abd el-Fattah. Abd el-Fattah's lawyer Khaled Ali said he was at the prison along with his mother Laila Soueif, and was waiting for prison authorities to allow him to visit. Egypt's public prosecutor said on Thursday Abd el-Fattah was in good health, after the family said they were informed that medical intervention had been carried out to maintain his health.

☆ Analysis: Xi and Biden cool the heat, but China and the US are still on collision course
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —The world can breathe a little easier after US President Joe Biden’s talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Monday. But they could also be read as the kind of lecture that Washington once delivered to Chinese leaders that Xi is now taking the opportunity to throw back at the US. Biden said after the talks that he didn’t find Xi “more confrontational or more conciliatory. Biden publicly told Xi that the US was ready to reengage in climate talks – at an opportune moment for the Egypt climate summit. Before he went to Asia, Biden suggested that China didn’t have that much respect for either Russian President Vladimir Putin or Russia itself.

☆ Middle East's Fertile Crescent dries up as rains fail
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Alaa Al-Marjani | Orhan Qereman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

As world leaders meet in Egypt for a climate summit to address issues including water and food security, Elwan’s plight highlights a crisis facing Iraq and other Middle Eastern countries that could fuel more turmoil in the region as communities fight over dwindling water resources. Reuters spoke to more than two dozen people in five provinces across Iraq who all said that a prolonged drought, which has only worsened in recent years, was crippling livelihoods. Farmers in neighbouring Syria and Turkey are also struggling with lower rainfall. In Iraq, officials and water experts said rains had come later and ended sooner in each of the last three years. “Desertification now threatens almost 40% of the area of our country - a country that was once one of the most fertile and productive in the region,” Iraq's President Abdul Latif Rashid told the climate summit in Egypt last week.

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Nov 14 (Reuters) - The heads of two big natural gas companies told Reuters on Monday they were seeking to use the setting of the COP27 international climate summit to bill their industry as a leader in the fight against global warming. loading"The world has changed, people have better understanding that upstream (gas) companies are not the enemy. "We’re seeing globally people taking a much more realistic approach, developing renewables but also developing a lot of natural gas." However, the research collaboration Climate Action Tracker said last week that countries scrambling to source more natural gas to replace supplies from Russia are risking years of emissions that could thwart climate goals. Coal power plants produced a fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions in 2021, more than any other single source, according to the International Energy Agency.

☆ Democratic congressional leaders vow to address U.S. debt limit
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-13 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Congressional Democratic leaders on Sunday vowed to tackle the nation's debt ceiling in coming weeks, saying their party's election victories offer them leverage even as Republicans have promised a potentially explosive fight. "The debt ceiling of course, is something that we have to deal with. The debt ceiling must be approved each time it needs to be raised in order to ensure that the United States avoids a default, which would have catastrophic effects. The mechanism is meant to control the nation's rising debt, although it has been ineffective in recent decades. Republicans have said the debt ceiling would be an "important tool" to rein in federal spending if they take control of the House.

☆ U.S. President Biden arrives in Bali for G20 summit
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[1/2] U.S. President Joe Biden watches a cultural performance as he arrives at the Ngurah Rai International Airport ahead of the G20 leaders' summit, near Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia, November 13, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin LamarqueNUSA DUA, Indonesia Nov 13 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden landed in Bali, Indonesia, on Sunday for the summit of the G20 group of major economies. Biden, who arrives off the back of his attendance at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt and the ASEAN summit in Cambodia, is set meet Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders to address a range of geopolitical issues this week, including the war in Ukraine, tensions in the Taiwan Strait and the ongoing food, energy and climate crises. Reporting by Fransiska Nangoy Writing by Kanupriya Kapoor Editing by David GoodmanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Climate disasters put plight of displaced in COP27 focus
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-13 | by ( Gloria Dickie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

There are some 22 million people like Hassan displaced every year in climate-fueled disasters, according to the U.N. International Organization for Migration (IOM). And with climate change fueling increasingly extreme weather worldwide, the number displaced is expected to grow to about 143 million by mid-century. Given the growing need, developing countries at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt this month are demanding that wealthy nations offer more in the way of help. "Each government impacted by climate change migrants can raise the subject" at the U.N. summit, said Caroline Dumas, the IOM's special envoy for migration and climate action. "I'm a refugee, former refugee," said Emtithal Mahmoud, a goodwill ambassador for the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR.

Nov 13 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden will meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping in person on Monday for the first time since taking office, with U.S. concerns over Taiwan, Russia's war in Ukraine and North Korea's nuclear ambitions on top of his agenda. Biden and Xi, who have held five phone or video calls since Biden became president in January 2021, last met in person during the Obama administration. Xi's government has also criticized the Biden administration's posture toward Taiwan as undermining China's sovereignty and territorial integrity. Biden will also discuss Moscow's invasion of Ukraine and plans to be "unapologetic" in his defence of Ukraine, U.S. officials said last week. Biden will also warn Xi that North Korea's continued pursuit of weapons development will lead to an enhanced U.S. military presence in the region, the White House said.

For more than 70 days this summer, a marine heatwave cooked the waters of the western Mediterranean. "We've been witnessing marine heatwaves during the last 20 years," said Garrabou, who's also coordinator of the T-MEDNet marine monitoring network. A 2016 marine heatwave along Chile's southern coast caused huge algae blooms that wiped out fish farms and cost the aquaculture industry some $800 million, said scientist Kathryn Smith with the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. As the world warms, marine heatwaves are expected to become more frequent, according to the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Though economists have yet to account fully for the impacts of marine heatwaves, recent experience has many concerned.

Those pledges include making steep cuts in climate-warming emissions within this decade and contributing to hundreds of billions of dollars needed each year by developing nations already struggling to cope with the impacts of climate change. That could also complicate the talks among government ministers on the so-called cover decisions - which make up the core political deal from the two-week summit. "We haven't seen huge solidarity between the developed and developing countries" but instead "disappointing commitments and action this year, which has dented trust." Developing nations have demanded that COP27 agree to launch a special fund to address loss and damage. The United States and other rich nations are wary of this idea, saying these rapid funds are better channeled through existing programs.

☆ Sister of jailed hunger striker says she has appealed to Egyptian president
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

A sister of jailed hunger striker Alaa Abd el-Fattah said she has appealed directly to Egypt’s president for an amnesty for her brother, whose protest has overshadowed a global climate summit in Egypt this week. Mona Seif resubmitted a request for clemency which she first made in June, along with a personal plea to Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, she said in a post on social media late on Friday. Sisi met U.S. President Joe Biden at the COP27 climate summit in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on Friday. Sisi said he told Biden that Egypt has launched a national strategy for human rights and a national dialogue. Abd el-Fattah, a prominent blogger and activist who has been in detention for much of the last decade, has been on hunger strike since April 2.

☆ Carbon Market Under Pressure to Deliver Billions in Climate Funding
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( Amrith Ramkumar | Shane Shifflett | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Some carbon credits are tied to preserving forests in countries such as Nigeria, but verifying the climate benefits is often a challenge. The U.S. government and United Nations are touting plans for businesses to funnel billions of dollars to developing nations to fight climate change. The efforts rely on a tiny carbon-credit market that has struggled for years with uneven standards and conflicts of interest. A global effort unveiled by U.S. climate envoy John Kerry and a U.N. Africa-focused credit initiative are two of the hallmark pledges of the climate summit continuing in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. The goal is to fill the financing gap to fund the transition to clean energy in developing countries.

Holding banners and chanting slogans, protesters demanded climate action. "COPs are not designed to face climate change because it would need more participation from civil society, less participation from lobbyists from the fossil industry," said Pedro Franco, a 27-year-old student. Joao Duarte, 23, also pointed a finger at governments for favouring the "monetary interests" of big companies instead of putting climate change at the top of the political agenda. "What we do or do not do in this decade will have a great impact on climate security." Reporting by Catarina Demony, Miguel Pereira and Pedro Nunes in Lisbon; Editing by Diane CraftOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Nov 12 (Reuters) - Strengthening trade ties and regional security will be priorities in an upcoming visit by Chinese leader Xi Jinping to Saudi Arabia, Saudi minister of state for foreign affairs Adel Al-Jubeir said on Saturday. Jubeir did not give details of the trip but said visits between Chinese and Saudi leaders were "natural". "China is Saudi Arabia's largest trading partner, we have huge investments in China and the Chinese have huge investments in Saudi Arabia," he told Reuters on the sidelines of the COP27 climate summit in Egypt. Jubeir said Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, was sincere in its efforts to tackle climate change and limit greenhouse gas emissions. "We believe in Saudi Arabia there is no contradiction between improving climate and producing oil," Jubeir said.

☆ Some countries have resisted 1.5°C goal in COP27 text, U.S. says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( Valerie Volcovici | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] John Kerry, U.S. Special Envoy for Climate speaks as he attends the opening of the American Pavilion in the COP27 climate summit in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt November 8, 2022. REUTERS/Mohammed SalemSHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Nov 12 (Reuters) - A few countries have resisted mentioning a global goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius in the official text of the COP27 summit in Egypt, U.S. Special Climate Envoy John Kerry said at the conference on Saturday. There are very few countries, but a few, that have raised the issue of not mentioning this word or that word," Kerry said when asked about opposition by some governments to mentioning the 1.5C target. Many developing countries have demanded the establishment of a "loss and damage" fund that could disperse cash to countries struggling to recover from disasters. Kerry said the United States would not support establishing such a fund, and instead believed existing platforms should be used.

☆ India seeks COP27 deal to 'phase down' all fossil fuels
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( Simon Jessop | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Nov 12 (Reuters) - India wants countries to agree to phase down all fossil fuels at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt, rather than a narrower deal to phase down coal as was agreed last year, two sources familiar with the negotiations told Reuters on Saturday. India wants to expand that pledge to include all fossil fuels, the two sources who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity said. Asked to confirm that was its position, a spokesperson for the Indian COP27 delegation said: "We did not mention coal at all." The proposal would have to be agreed by consensus during the next week if it were to go into a final COP27 deal. "We mentioned the IPCC AR6 report that has come since Glasgow that recognizes the need for phase down for all fossil fuels.

☆ Sister of jailed hunger striker says she has appealed to Egypt president
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Nov 12 (Reuters) - A sister of jailed hunger striker Alaa Abd el-Fattah said she has appealed directly to Egypt's president for an amnesty for her brother, whose protest has overshadowed a global climate summit in Egypt this week. Sisi met U.S. President Joe Biden at the COP27 climate summit in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on Friday. Without naming Abd el-Fattah, the White House said Biden raised human rights during their talks. Sisi said he told Biden that Egypt has launched a national strategy for human rights and a national dialogue. Abd el-Fattah, a prominent blogger and activist who has been in detention for much of the last decade, has been on hunger strike since April 2.

☆ U.S. President Biden slips up on name of ASEAN summit host Cambodia
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PHNOM PENH, Nov 12 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday referred to Cambodia, which is hosting an international summit led by Southeast Asian leaders, as Colombia. He was referring to Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia, who is currently chairing the 10-member regional bloc. The president, who is on a whirlwind trip with stops at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt, ASEAN in Phnom Penh and the G20 summit in Indonesia, made a similar slip-up while speaking to reporters at the White House recently. Supporters call that ageism and say the president, who overcame a childhood stutter, has been ad-libbing in public speeches for decades. Reporting by Nandita Bose and Jiraporn Kuhakan; Writing by Kanupriya Kapoor; Editing by Christina FincherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Curbs on rights weaken Egypt's climate talks, campaigners say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( Dominic Evans | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

[1/2] People walk outside of the Sharm El Sheikh International Convention Centre during the COP27 climate summit opening in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt November 6, 2022. Climate action "requires more people on the street, more voices, more independent research, more independent reporting, more accountability when climate obligations are not met," said Tirana Hassan, Human Rights Watch's acting Executive Director. "That's not going to happen under governments such as the Egyptian government which is excluding civil society, independent journalism and academia," she told a meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh this week. Despite those criticisms some delegates argued that there was a benefit to holding the summit in Sharm el-Sheikh to shine a light briefly on Egypt's record. "This is a huge opportunity," Egyptian journalist and human rights advocate Hossam Bahgat said.

Three quarters of cars produced by South Africa's auto industry, which accounts for 5% of gross domestic product and over 100,000 jobs, are exported, mostly to European countries. Martina Biene, Volkswagen South Africa's new managing director, told Reuters the company's manufacturing facilities in the country do not plan an immediate pivot to producing electric vehicles. "I think by 2035 there will be production of electric vehicles in Africa ... but in the meantime we will export probably less to Europe than other countries." Volkswagen South Africa produced over 129,000 vehicles last year along with more than 58,000 engines, mostly destined for exports. That would focus on selling South African-manufactured petrol and diesel vehicles in most markets and imported EVs in countries like Mauritius, Cape Verde and South Africa as demand for more environmentally friendly cars picks up there.

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