Successfully "holding the line": the EU and the outcomes of COP28

Koch, Svea / Steffen Bauer
External Publications (2023)

published on blogs.idos-research.de, 18.12.2023

At the previous “COP27” UN climate change conference, the EU took many by surprise with a gamble it appeared to have taken. Europe conceded to developing countries’ demands with regard to establishing a designated funding mechanism to deal with loss and damage resulting from climate change literally in an overnight turnaround. It had expected to yield returns with regard to mitigation ambition, yet, these did not materialize at COP27. Still, at COP28 the EU needed to be seen to walk the talk and deliver on loss and damage finance while return on investment remained uncertain until the very end of COP28. This blog critically appraises the EU's consistency in „holding the line“- a metaphor used by civil society organisations to refer to the need to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, as stipulated in the Paris Agreement - and the EU’s role in securing the outcome of COP28. It also provides an outlook towards COP29 in Azerbaijan and argues why and how the EU will need to step up its game to brace itself for the next round of tough international climate negotiations.