COP27 President Sameh Shoukry attends the opening session of the conference. Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
In remarks made to TV, Shoukry stressed that the ongoing energy crisis, which resulted from the Russia-Ukraine conflict, has derailed efforts aiming to end reliance on fossil fuel and expand the use of clean and renewable energy sources.
COP27 kicked off today in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh, with over 41,000 people (including heads of state and government and media professionals) attending the inauguration.
The conference reflects the urgency, on a global level, of cutting emissions and boosting climate action.
“We urge the countries that probably think of going back to unclean energy due to economic impacts to return to the path of tangibly reducing emissions,” Shoukry stated.
The COP27 president also called on all countries not to allow any geopolitical differences to interfere with the efforts to priorotise climate action.
“We can overcome political and economic crises through multilateral and political frameworks, but if we come to the point where the damage done to planet earth becomes irreparable, it will be very hard to wind back the clock,” Shoukry stated.
COP27 is held under the title “Together for Implementation.” The conference envisions translating climate pledges into action and ensuring commitments on financing climate action in developing states are fulfilled.
Egypt has repeatedly urged countries to “put aside political differences” over the Russia-Ukraine war and to collaborate to move forward on climate action. Egypt has also vowed to work on avoiding a “spillover of other issues into the climate change negotiations.”
The Egyptian COP27 presidency said over 120 heads of state and government are expected to take part in the conference.
In his TV remarks today, Shoukry said African leaders will actively participate in the COP27 World Leaders Summit, which takes place 7-8 November, to voice Africa’s concerns over climate change.
The active participation of African countries aims to promote the continent's interests. These interests focus on guaranteeing fair energy transition in a way that enables the continent to fulfill its climate responsibilities without obstructing its sustainable development.
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