Coal ‘phase down’ taken from US-China COP26 statement, criticism of India
NEW DELHI: Seeking to counter criticism from developed countries about India being the last-minute spoiler at the recent COP26 with regard to coal “phase out”, senior officials pushed back saying such commentary is ill-informed and unfair. The term “phase down”, which replaced “phase out”, of coal emissions was taken from the US-China statement of the day before.
Officials said India objected to the fact that only coal was mentioned and not oil and gas, which is primarily used by developed countries. That puts countries like India and China in the dock while providing a loophole for western countries. Officials also said PM Narendra Modi’s remarks on net-zero and other climate pledges should not be confused with India’s nationally determined contributions (NDCs) — the PM was setting out “national goals” while the revised NDC is a technical document. The PM, sources said, made an “ambitious statement.” “It took many by surprise. PM said if you want higher ambition in mitigation, there should be more ambition in financing and adaptation. Ambition cannot be one-sided,” they added.
Policy head of Action Aid USA, Brandon Wu summarised the core “injustice” in a Twitter thread, where he described western actions as “climate colonialism”.
The text targets “unabated coal power and inefficient fossil fuel subsidies, which leaves GIANT loopholes for CCS (and ‘efficient’ FF subsidies) as well as leaving out oil & gas entirely. India earlier suggested that it address ALL fossil fuels in an equitable manner. But an equitable fossil fuel phaseout would place most of the burden squarely on the US and rich countries… Instead, the #COP26 existing language has heavy implications for developing countries like India and tons of loopholes for the continuation of US fossil fuel activities.”
India and China worked together on the coal language, officials said. Unfortunately, India was in the spotlight as its environment minister was asked to read out the final outcome, they added.
Critics have pointed to India’s “naïveté” through which China was let off the hook while India took the brickbats, despite showing the biggest commitment to climate mitigation goals at the summit. “We objected to the over-emphasis on mitigation versus finance and adaptation,” sources said, adding India had consistently objected to the targeting of coal subsidies.
There is, however, another view that if India had not asserted itself, the government would well have faced criticism for not being vigilant about the country’s interests. The view in government is that the goals set out by the PM for 2030 are a strong goad for western nations to fulfill their side of the deal.
The BASIC statement, officials said, made it clear India would not agree to phase out of coal subsidies — India was joined by South Africa, Australia, Indonesia, Venezuela, Nigeria, China among others. A compromise was worked out bringing the language close to the G-20 statement, they added, “with national safeguards and adequate protection for poor and vulnerable countries”. Ultimately, “we tried to find consensus,” they said.
The final document…
Officials said India objected to the fact that only coal was mentioned and not oil and gas, which is primarily used by developed countries. That puts countries like India and China in the dock while providing a loophole for western countries. Officials also said PM Narendra Modi’s remarks on net-zero and other climate pledges should not be confused with India’s nationally determined contributions (NDCs) — the PM was setting out “national goals” while the revised NDC is a technical document. The PM, sources said, made an “ambitious statement.” “It took many by surprise. PM said if you want higher ambition in mitigation, there should be more ambition in financing and adaptation. Ambition cannot be one-sided,” they added.
Policy head of Action Aid USA, Brandon Wu summarised the core “injustice” in a Twitter thread, where he described western actions as “climate colonialism”.
The text targets “unabated coal power and inefficient fossil fuel subsidies, which leaves GIANT loopholes for CCS (and ‘efficient’ FF subsidies) as well as leaving out oil & gas entirely. India earlier suggested that it address ALL fossil fuels in an equitable manner. But an equitable fossil fuel phaseout would place most of the burden squarely on the US and rich countries… Instead, the #COP26 existing language has heavy implications for developing countries like India and tons of loopholes for the continuation of US fossil fuel activities.”
India and China worked together on the coal language, officials said. Unfortunately, India was in the spotlight as its environment minister was asked to read out the final outcome, they added.
Critics have pointed to India’s “naïveté” through which China was let off the hook while India took the brickbats, despite showing the biggest commitment to climate mitigation goals at the summit. “We objected to the over-emphasis on mitigation versus finance and adaptation,” sources said, adding India had consistently objected to the targeting of coal subsidies.
There is, however, another view that if India had not asserted itself, the government would well have faced criticism for not being vigilant about the country’s interests. The view in government is that the goals set out by the PM for 2030 are a strong goad for western nations to fulfill their side of the deal.
The BASIC statement, officials said, made it clear India would not agree to phase out of coal subsidies — India was joined by South Africa, Australia, Indonesia, Venezuela, Nigeria, China among others. A compromise was worked out bringing the language close to the G-20 statement, they added, “with national safeguards and adequate protection for poor and vulnerable countries”. Ultimately, “we tried to find consensus,” they said.
The final document…
Read More: Coal ‘phase down’ taken from US-China COP26 statement, criticism of India