Analysis: Emirati oil CEO leading UN COP28 climate summit lashes out as talks enter toughest stage
by Jon Gambrell and Seth Borenstein
Dec 04, 2023
4 minutes
The Emirati leading the United Nations' COP28 climate talks walked out on stage Monday to a room full of journalists to offer a 17-minute list of what he described as the stunning successes made so far in the summit.
Then he spent the rest of the time criticizing the media covering his contradictory remarks about phasing out fossil fuels that again raised the concerns of activists about him heading a state-run energy company that plans to increase its production of crude oil and natural gas.
Sultan al-Jaber’s comments highlight the dualities of the United Arab Emirates, an autocratic federation of seven sheikhdoms. It’s filled with modern skyscrapers but has no freedom of speech.
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