(Reuters) – Brazil’s climate talks have reached a tentative agreement, sources told Reuters on Saturday, after negotiators resolved a prolonged impasse over action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and climate finance.
The two-week conference, billed as a chance to show that nations can still join forces to tackle climate change despite the U.S. absence, was scheduled to end on Friday but dragged on as negotiators struggled to resolve the impasse.
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Sources said the impasse was resolved after all-night talks led by host country Brazil, although the final text of the agreement has not yet been released and details of the compromise were not immediately clear.
The European Union has agreed not to stand in the way of a deal, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Saturday morning. The Brazilian presidency scheduled a plenary session to close the conference for 11 am. Any agreement needs a consensus to be approved.
Fossil fuel pledge
Negotiations were deadlocked over the balance between moving forward on implementing a 2023 pledge to move away from fossil fuels and drafting the flow of climate finance — to adapt to the effects of global warming — from developed nations to poorer ones.
The European Union had been pushing for language on phasing out fossil fuels, but faced strong resistance from the Arab Group of nations, including Saudi Arabia.
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COP30 president André Corrêa do Lago said on Saturday that the presidency would publish a parallel text on fossil fuels, as well as on forest protection, as there was no consensus on these issues in global climate negotiations.
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“I’m going to announce that the Brazilian presidency will carry out both itineraries because we clearly didn’t have the maturity to reach a consensus. I believe that if we do this under the presidency, we will have results”, he stated.
The countries also agreed that rich nations should triple adaptation funding for developing countries by 2035, based on a 2025 doubling target, according to a source familiar with the negotiations.
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The decision, which would form part of the COP30 agreement, would urge rich countries to increase funding to help poorer nations deal with climate impacts.
Separately, a Leaders’ Declaration from a G20 meeting in South Africa emphasized the seriousness of climate change, in a snub at US President Donald Trump.
Lisandra Portra in the Cate and Cates Varethan Varhadan
