The UN climate summit failed to deliver a clear plan to phase out fossil fuels, leaving the EU increasingly isolated. COP30 in Belém concluded with a final text that offered no roadmap, prompting critics to call it an empty deal and a moral failure. The United States withdrew from climate negotiations, creating a political and financial gap, while President Donald Trump dismissed climate change as a con job. Countries heavily dependent on fossil-fuel revenue, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, opposed any target or timeline for phasing out fossil fuels.
One day before the summit ended, the EU threatened to reject the agreement, which required consensus from nearly 200 nations. Ultimately, EU leaders endorsed the final text, recognizing its lack of ambition but seeing no alternative. Despite the outcome, the 27 EU members reaffirmed their commitment to the 1.5°C limit and continued efforts to reduce global warming and pollution. The bloc pledged to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels at home and to fund clean energy projects abroad. European Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra said the EU acted united and demanded stronger climate ambition from global partners.
Fragmented Alliances Hinder Progress
Dutch MEP Mohammed Chahim said President Lula set high expectations and the EU arrived ready to lead a coalition of ambitious nations. He warned that fragmentation in the international system blocked success and slowed coordinated climate action. Resistance from oil-producing states proved too strong, and shifting geopolitical balances further weakened momentum for a fossil-fuel exit. Chahim added that the EU and the United Kingdom had to work against the tide while BRICS nations resisted decisive action.
BRICS, a coalition of ten emerging economies led by Moscow, positioned itself as a counterweight to Western influence. Irish Minister Darragh O’Brien said he reluctantly supported the final text and regretted the absence of a credible roadmap for phasing out fossil fuels. More than 80 countries, including Ireland, had called for such a roadmap during COP30, but negotiators refused to include it. Former US Vice President Al Gore criticized petrostates for blocking progress while emphasizing that Brazil would still pursue a global roadmap, backed by nations that support stronger climate action.
Science and Legal Experts Raise Alarm
Climate researchers and environmental advocates expressed strong criticism of COP30’s outcome. Nikki Reisch, from the Centre for International Environmental Law, called the agreement “empty,” ignoring repeated scientific and legal calls to phase out fossil fuels and hold polluters accountable. She warned that major emitters stalled progress and withheld funding while the world faced growing climate disasters.
Doug Weir of the Conflict and Environment Observatory described the final text as a moral failure, leaving communities already facing severe climate impacts behind. He noted that negotiators made no progress since Dubai and now faced an even steeper challenge. A Climate Analytics report suggested that full implementation of COP28 pledges could reduce global warming by a third within ten years. Governments could halve warming rates by 2040 if they tripled renewable energy, doubled efficiency, and acted on methane emissions.
Climate Analytics CEO Bill Hare stressed that these measures could keep warming below 2°C instead of the projected 2.6°C. World leaders gathered in Belém to assess progress toward the 1.5°C target, ten years after the Paris Agreement. The summit concluded after two weeks of discussions in the Amazonian city, and upcoming COP meetings in Australia and Turkey aim to revive stalled international climate cooperation.
