A backlash erupted at COP30 after the latest draft deal dropped a roadmap to phase out fossil fuels, angering vulnerable nations, activists, and youth delegates who warn the text is too weak to ensure a just transition or meaningful climate action.
The COP30 climate summit in Belém descended into renewed controversy early Friday after the latest draft text dropped a detailed roadmap for phasing out fossil fuels, provoking outrage from vulnerable nations and environmental groups.
The draft includes the Mutirão decision, a central proposal by host country Brazil addressing long debated issues such as climate finance and strengthening weak national climate plans. But the most contentious omission is the absence of a roadmap to phase out coal, oil and gas, an expansion of the single, vague line agreed at COP28 that has remained virtually untouched for two years.
More than 80 countries, backed by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, have demanded stronger guidance on fossil-fuel transition.
The Mutirão text states that the global shift toward low emission, climate resilient development is “irreversible and the trend of the future,” acknowledges that the Paris Agreement is functioning, and urges countries to move “further and faster.”
For many, this falls far short of what is needed.
A strongly worded joint letter signed by 29 countries including the UK, France, Germany, Palau, the Marshall Islands and Vanuatu warns that the draft does not meet “minimum standards for a credible COP outcome.” The signatories argue the text risks delaying negotiations toward an agreement that must be approved by near consensus.
“We cannot support an outcome that does not include a roadmap for implementing a just, orderly, and equitable transition away from fossil fuels,” the letter states. “This expectation is shared by a vast majority of parties, as well as by science and by the people who are watching our work closely.”
Environmental groups voiced similar frustration. Tracy Carty of Greenpeace International said: “Hopes were raised by initial proposals for road maps to end deforestation and fossil fuels, but these have now vanished. We’re again left without a map to 1.5°C, fumbling in the dark while time is running out.”
Bronwen Tucker of Oil Change International condemned the draft as “shamefully weak,” saying it “fails to mention fossil fuels, fails to deliver accountability on rich countries’ finance obligations, and only offers vague promises on adaptation.”
Bangladeshi youth delegate Sohanur Rahman, Executive Coordinator of YouthNet Global, expressed deep disappointment: “Young people and climate-affected communities came here demanding a just transition, but this draft fails to deliver. Without a roadmap to phase out fossil fuels and fair financing, we risk condemning the most vulnerable to escalating climate disasters. COP30 must be bold, not timid.”
The draft does propose tripling adaptation finance by 2030, but provides no clarity on where the money will come from. Developing countries stress that adaptation, such as protecting cities from extreme storms, relies heavily on public funding, not private capital.
COP30 was officially scheduled to conclude on Friday evening, but negotiations may extend into the weekend as delegates scramble to resolve the most divisive issues. Both negotiators and activists are urging a stronger deal to ensure COP30 does not fall short at a moment of escalating climate urgency.
