Some say the deal is historic, others that it is weak. We look closely at the text for the truth of the matter
The decision text from Cop28 has been greeted as “historic”, for being the first ever call by nations for a “transition away” from fossil fuels, and as “weak and ineffectual” and containing a “litany of loopholes” for the fossil fuel industry. An examination of the text helps to explain this contradiction.
Good morning Maple readers. On Tuesday, Canada voted for a resolution at the UN General Assembly to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, a move that human rights activists said shows the Trudeau government is finally listening to the demands of Palestine solidarity protests.
As we have reported, these protests have frequently been met unkindly by government officials and law enforcement services.
The absence of a ‘phase-out’ let petrostates off the hook, but there are other ways to end the era of coal, oil and gas
Petrostates fought fiercely against the call from 130 nations at Cop28 for a fossil fuel phase-out. That is because they are engaged in a colossal fossil fuel phase-up, already working on double the extraction that the planet can cope with.
Developing countries call agreement to transition away from fossil fuels ‘unfair’ and ‘inequitable’
As the leaders of the developed world hailed the Cop28 agreement to “transition away” from fossil fuels as historic, Indigenous people, frontline communities and climate justice groups rebuked the deal as unfair, inequitable and business as usual.
As the crisis unfolds, the brute exercise of power by the U.S. and Israel has catalyzed world reactions. A significant transformation in global diplomacy is underway.
In a sign of instability in Beijing’s top ranks, foreign policy and defense officials are vanishing as Xi roots out perceived enemies.
Something is rotten in the imperial court of Chairman Xi Jinping.
While the world is distracted by war in the Middle East and Ukraine, a Stalin-like purge is sweeping through China’s ultra-secretive political system, with profound implications for the global economy and even the prospects for peace in the region.
Italy’s far-right League leader Matteo Salvini called on the European People’s Party (EPP) at a meeting of EU far-right parties in Florence to collaborate and “liberate Brussels” from those who “occupy” it illegally.
Italy’s far-right League leader Matteo Salvini called on the European People’s Party (EPP) at a meeting of EU far-right parties in Florence to collaborate and “liberate Brussels” from those who “occupy” it illegally.
![“For the first time a united and determined centre-right can win and free Brussels from those who are occupying it illegally for their own personal interest”, Salvini noted. [EPA-EFE/CLAUDIO GIOVANNINI]](https://ecosocialistsvancouver.org/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/article-image/lead-3-1024x576.png?itok=kz4Hcozc)
