COP26 approves new climate laws but China and India undermine coal promise

The COP26 conference in Glasgow succeeded in getting 197 countries to ratify new air pollution control laws, but last-minute protests from India and China thwarted commitment to curb coal use and provide fuel for oil.

Conference President Alok Sharma burst into tears at the last minute as he apologized to some ministers for pouring part of the oil rig to appease Beijing and New Delhi. However, the meeting pointed out for the first time that coal oil or fossil fuels were specifically mentioned in the COP agreement.

The countries also agreed on rules that would govern the 2015 climate agreement in Paris, which aims to reduce global warming to below 2C from pre-industrial times, and well up to 1.5C, and increase international aid to adapt to climate change.

Temperatures have risen by 1.1C at the time, and many countries are experiencing the effects.

In the final hours of the conference, the process of approving COP26 documents was interrupted when China and India protested to the term “emerging phase” of coal-fired power, referring to plants that do not absorb carbon dioxide, as well as to all fossil fuels.

In the aftermath of the unrest between the US, the EU and China, an agreement was reached promising to “sit down” instead of removing coal.

But many high-risk and small-scale countries are opposed to the language, saying it could jeopardize their future by bringing more air and global warming.

Sharma said he was “deeply saddened” by the outcome, but urged countries to ratify the treaty so that everything could be done.

The affected period was accompanied by a round of applause from the convened ministers, who accepted the documents and changed them.

Says US Secretary of Meteorology John Kerry: “Coal is still very much alive. “You have to lower the coal before you run out of coal,” he added, defending the change.

“Am I thankful that we had to make a change tonight in a very special way? “No, but if we did not do that, we would not agree,” he said.

Considering the coronavirus barriers are escalating political conflicts, the meeting was occasional the unexpected happens never, delayed from 2020 by Covid-19.

The Paris climate agreement, which disrupted a number of previous summit meetings, was finalized at COP26, in addition to the rules on how countries express their air.

Instructions for a global carbon market, which will allow countries to sell carbon offset loans, was also approved.

Several commentators said they were surprised and pleased that all the laws were passed after years of controversy.

Although Saudi Arabia said it had ratified the agreement. “It is as good as it can be,” Ayman Shasly, senior Saudi envoy and former Saudi Aramco official in China, told the Financial Times on the sidelines of the conference. “It’s all a combination, it affects everything related to the Paris agreement. All the parties were happy with it.”

Sharma, speaking at a press conference, criticized the exhaustion for his time of thought on the podium, but admitted that he was “disappointed” by the last-minute change in the text. He said: “Anyone who has seen the images can decide for me how I felt.

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