Moving away from fossil fuels is a step in the right direction

Editorial: Cop28 was destined to be another failure on a global scale – and yet it has ended with a historic deal that, for the first time, calls for an end to fossil fuels. We must now embrace potentially revolutionary new technologies to reach that unexpected, but vital, ambition

Cop28 has made a historical declaration on fossil fuels – but will it be implemented, and is it enough? (Getty)

Until the last few hours of “extra time” at Cop28, the assembled leaders, diplomats, campaigners, business people and academics in Dubai feared the very worst.

At a time when the world has lost some momentum in the fight against climate change, as wars and economic hardship became more pressing priorities, the presidency of the United Arab Emirates – apparently, an unpromising host for the proceedings as a petrostate – seemed doomed to fail. The first draft of the final declaration made no mention of fossil fuels, let alone any commitment to phasing them out. This, so it was rumoured, was because of resistance from Saudi Arabia, and from developing nations dependent on oil and gas for their industrialisation.

With such dynamics, a repeat of the debacle at the Copenhagen Cop in 2009 – dropped targets and relaxed deadlines in the face of the then global financial crisis – seemed likely.