The UN climate summit failed to produce a clear plan to phase out fossil fuels, leaving the EU increasingly isolated. COP30 in Belém concluded with a final text that contained no roadmap, prompting critics to label it a moral failure and an empty deal. The United States withdrew from climate negotiations, creating both a political and financial vacuum, while President Donald Trump dismissed climate change as a con job.
Countries heavily dependent on fossil-fuel revenues, such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE, opposed any target or timeline for a phase-out. 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 text, acknowledging 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 also pledged to advance fossil-fuel transition at home while funding clean energy projects abroad. European Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra emphasized that the EU acted as a united force and pressed for stronger global climate ambition.
Fragmented Alliances Hamper Global Action
Dutch MEP Mohammed Chahim said President Lula set high expectations and that the EU arrived ready to lead a coalition of ambitious nations. He warned that global fragmentation hampered success and slowed international climate cooperation. Resistance from oil-producing states proved overwhelming, and shifting geopolitical balances weakened progress on reducing fossil fuels.
Chahim added that the EU and the UK struggled 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, regretting the absence of a credible fossil-fuel phase-out roadmap. More than 80 countries, including Ireland, had called for such a roadmap during COP30, but negotiators rejected it. Former US Vice President Al Gore criticized petrostates for blocking progress, while stressing that Brazil would continue to push a global roadmap supported by committed nations.
Science and Law Warn of Consequences
Climate scientists and environmental advocates expressed strong criticism of the summit outcome. Nikki Reisch of the Centre for International Environmental Law called the agreement “empty,” noting it ignored repeated scientific and legal calls to replace fossil fuels and hold polluters accountable. She warned that major polluters stalled progress and withheld funding while the planet faced worsening disasters.
Doug Weir of the Conflict and Environment Observatory described the final text as a moral failure, leaving communities already suffering from climate impacts behind. He noted that negotiators had made no progress since Dubai and now faced an even steeper challenge. A report from Climate Analytics 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 emphasized that these measures could limit warming to below 2°C, instead of the projected 2.6°C. World leaders gathered in Belém to assess progress toward the 1.5°C goal, ten years after the Paris Agreement. After two weeks of talks in the Amazonian city, the summit concluded, with Australia and Turkey slated to host upcoming COP meetings to reinvigorate global climate efforts.
