(Reuters) – Official events at the COP27 climate conference resume on Monday after a day of rest, with negotiators from nearly 200 countries diving into fractious debates on climate finance.
The negotiators will be trying before government ministers arrive this week to make as much progress as possible towards a hoped-for deal out of the annual U.N. climate summit.
But with one week left for the talks in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, frustrations were starting to emerge, specifically over the thorny issue of “loss and damage”, or financial support for developing countries hit by climate-fueled disasters.
All eyes turned on Monday towards Indonesia, where Chinese President Xi Jinping was meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden on climate issues ahead of the G20 meeting starting on Tuesday in Bali. Experts said that whatever results from that meeting between the leaders of the world’s two biggest polluting countries will have a big impact on the COP27 talks.
Other news out of G20 that Indonesia was teaming up with the Asian Development Bank and a private power firm to refinance and prematurely retire a coal-fired power plant was sure to buoy the mood in Egypt. The deal is part of a global effort to accelerate the mothballing of coal capacity in developing countries.
Also, a G7 plan – called Global Shield – is expected to be announced on Monday at COP27 for funneling emergency climate funding to developing countries.
As well, India is expected to announce on Monday in Egypt its long-term strategy to slash emissions at home. Sources say the South Asian giant will be arguing for a global “phase down” of all fossil fuels.
The Ukrainian environment minister was also due to arrive at the U.N. summit. Last week, members of Ukraine’s COP27 delegation said they hoped their presence drew attention to the climate and environmental consequences of Russia’s February invasion of their country.
(Writing by Katy Daigle; Editing by Tom Hogue)
