The EU has appointed Eamon Ryan, the Minister for Environment, Climate, and Communications, as one of its lead negotiators for climate finance at Cop28 in Dubai.
Last year, he played a similar role at Cop27, where he successfully led negotiations on the defining issue of that conference, 'Loss and Damage'.
This year, he will work with his French counterpart, energy minister Agnes Pannier Runnacher, as discussions at the UN climate conference enter the crucial political phase.
Minister Ryan said: "We must keep the rise in global temperatures below 1.5°C [degrees]. In order to do this, we will have to phase out unabated fossil fuels. But this can’t happen overnight, and we must have a meaningful alternative so that countries that are currently reliant on this polluting form of energy can switch easily and faster to clean, renewable energy systems.
"This will require a reform of global financial systems, switching investment flows from fossil fuel into the clean energy sector. In essence, this means that it must become cheaper and more attractive to invest in renewables, particularly for developing countries, and much more expensive and less attractive to invest in dirty energy systems and ongoing exploration."
