World looks to G20 in Rio de Janeiro for breakthrough in climate talks

 Diplomatic tensions over global warming will take centre stage at the G20 summit in Brazil this week.

Heads of state arriving in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday for the G20 summit will spend Monday and Tuesday addressing issues from poverty and hunger to the reform of global institutions. Still, the ongoing U.N. climate talks have thrown a spotlight on their efforts to tackle global warming.

While the COP29 summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, is tasked with agreeing a goal to mobilize hundreds billions of dollars for the climate, leaders of the Group of 20 major economies half a world away in Rio are holding the purse strings.

G20 countries account for 85% of the world's economy and are the largest contributors to multilateral development banks helping to steer climate finance. They are also responsible for more than three-quarters of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.

"All countries must do their part. But the G20 must lead," U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres told COP29 last week. "They are the largest emitters, with the greatest capacities and responsibilities." Since officially assuming the G20 presidency on 1st December 2023, Brazil has been focusing on strengthening cooperation among member states to find effective solutions to key global challenges.

According to Brazil's vision, the future direction of the G20 aims to address pressing issues through dynamic initiatives, commitment to sustainable practices and inclusive dialogue, paving the way for shared achievements among G20 countries.

Through its leadership of the G20, Brazil is working to develop innovative strategies and fruitful co-operation with the G20 countries to build a future characterised by shared achievements and global solidarity.

The UAE's participation as a guest at the G20 Summit being held on 18-19 November in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, under the theme "Building a Just World and a Sustainable Planet", is part of an exchange of shared visions with Brazil.

This supports joint action to achieve future goals, especially as relations between the two friendly countries are witnessing steady development with their agreement in 2019 to elevate their bilateral relations to the level of strategic partnership.

The UAE has declared its support for the priorities of the Brazilian G20 presidency, which include developing global governance, combating poverty and hunger, and addressing climate and energy challenges.

Throughout this year, the UAE has been keen to participate in all G20-related ministerial meetings held in Brazil. These included the Foreign Ministers Meeting, the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting, the Trade and Investment Ministers Meeting, the Labour and Employment Ministers Meeting, the Sherpa Meeting, and the G20 Tourism Ministers Meeting for 2024.

The meeting of agriculture ministers, the meeting of energy ministers, the meeting of health ministers to discuss global health challenges and identify strategic priorities, the meetings of education ministers, and other meetings that came within the agenda of the group's work.

In terms of bilateral relations, the UAE is one of Brazil's largest economic partners in the Middle East, with trade between the two countries reaching AED13.28 billion in the first eight months of this year.
Brazil is currently the UAE's largest trading partner in Latin America, and the second largest in the Americas after the United States.

UAE investments are estimated at $5b with major Emirati companies such as Mubadala, DP World, Emirates Airlines, First Abu Dhabi Bank, Yahsat and others.

The two countries are working to support joint initiatives aimed at achieving sustainable development. In this regard, the UAE government and the government of the Federative Republic of Brazil launched this year a strategic partnership in the areas of government modernisation, focusing on exchanging expertise, experiences and best practices in three areas of cooperation, including capacity building of government cadres, knowledge exchange in the field of government competitiveness, and sharing experiences in the economic fields.

Brazil announced this year that it has joined the UAE Declaration on a Global Climate Finance Framework, launched by a group of world leaders at COP28, which saw the announcement of the historic UAE Consensus. It has raised and catalysed more than $85 billion in funding and launched 11 pledges and declarations.

The endorsement of Brazil, which will host COP30 in Belem in 2025, was a reflection of the coordination between the agendas of the COP and G20 presidencies to provide affordable and concessional climate finance.

On the other hand, the UAE has growing and developing relations with the G20 countries. Trade and investment relations between the two sides are witnessing a qualitative leap characterised by development and prosperity, as reflected in non-oil foreign trade data, which recorded $196.1 billion during the first half of 2024, an increase of 4.1% compared to the same period of the previous year.

The G20 accounted for 51.6% of the country's total non-oil foreign trade during that period. This growth was driven by a record increase in the UAE's non-oil exports, which rose by 11.5%, with the UAE's non-oil trade with the G20 reaching $393.2 billion in 2023.

With a growth of 15.3% compared to 2022 and 54% compared to 2019, this reflects the strength of the growing economic ties between the UAE and the world's 20 largest economies.

The G20 consists of 19 countries: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkiye, the United Kingdom and the United States, as well as the African Union and the European Union.
G20 members represent about 85% of global GDP and more than 75% of global trade.
WAM/ Agencies