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Al Jaber dismisses Cop28 oil deal allegations as ‘false’

By Pramod Kumar
Cop28 president Sultan Al Jaber says allegations against the UAE are 'an attempt to undermine the work of the Cop28 presidency' Reuters/Amr Alfiky
Cop28 president Sultan Al Jaber says allegations against the UAE are 'an attempt to undermine the work of the Cop28 presidency'

Cop28 president Sultan Al Jaber has firmly rejected allegations that the UAE, the host of Cop28, intended to use climate talks to strike commercial oil and gas deals.

The BBC and the UK-based Centre for Climate Reporting this week reported that leaked briefing documents revealed Al Jaber’s plans to discuss fossil fuel deals with 15 countries at the summit.

“These allegations are false, not true, incorrect, and are not accurate. It is an attempt to undermine the work of the Cop28 presidency,” Al Jaber told a news conference in Dubai.

“Let me ask you a question: do you think the UAE or myself will need the Cop or the Cop presidency to go and establish business deals or commercial relationships?”

“I promise you, never ever did I see these talking points that they refer (to), or that I ever even used such talking points in my discussions,” Al Jaber asserted.

Al Jaber is also the chief executive of state oil giant Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc).

He stated that every meeting he conducted with governments or stakeholders as president of the climate talks “has always been centred around one thing and one thing only: that is my Cop28 agenda”.

Cop28, which begins today at Expo City Dubai, runs until December 12, 2023.

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