The UAE holds an annual oil and gas conference just ahead of hosting UN COP28 climate talks in Dubai

By JON GAMBRELL
Associated Press

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Emirati president-designate of the upcoming United Nations COP28 climate talks has called on oil and gas companies to be “central to the solution” to fighting climate change, even as the industry boosts its production to enjoy rising energy prices. The call on Monday by Sultan al-Jaber highlights the gap between climate activists suspicious of his industry ties and his calls to drastically slash the world’s emissions by nearly half in seven years to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, or about 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit, compared with pre-industrial times. Al-Jaber said: “It is simply acknowledging and respecting the science.”