COP28 Negotiations and Significance of Article 6

December 11, 2023

GS Paper III Environment

Context: On the tenth day of COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, significant developments unfolded in the discussions surrounding the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Significant Developments of COP-28

COP Presidency Plenary: COP 28 President Sultan Al Jaber stated that there were more “areas of divergence than convergence” in all negotiation tracks.
- For mitigation, the major divergence was language around fossil fuel phaseout/phasedown and abatement technologies.
- There was also divergence on the difference between the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities (CBDR-RC) and the term “equitable transition” and division of the remaining carbon budget.
COP 29 Host: Azerbaijan has been announced as the host country of the next COP summit in 2024 — COP 29 — with the capital city of Baku set to host the talks at the end of next year.
- Global Stocktake draft: The last draft of the Global Stocktake text has effectively proposed including India and China in the list of countries with historical responsibility for creating significant emissions.
  - Till now, only the developed countries have been listed as historical emitters.
- New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG): New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) refers to ongoing negotiations on a new climate finance commitment that developed countries must make to developing countries to accelerate the world’s transition away from fossil fuels
Phasing out fossil fuel subsidies: The Netherlands headed a joint ministerial statement on phasing out fossil fuel subsidies. Canada, France, Austria, Belgium, Antigua & Barbuda, and Finland are among the signatories of the coalition.
- The joint ministerial addresses the lack of a clear methodology and international cooperation as key barriers to the implementation.

About Article 6

Article 6 of the Paris Agreement outlines ways in which countries can collaborate to fulfill their nationally determined contributions (NDC), widely recognized as the provision for carbon markets (and non-market approaches) within the Paris Agreement.