EU waters down climate target in last-ditch deal before COP30 in Brazil

Bloc agrees compromises to win over sceptical countries as climate concerns take backseat to trade and defence.

European Union climate ministers have struck a watered-down deal on emission-reduction goals as they have scrambled to win over member states before the United Nations COP30 summit in the Amazon.

Ministers approved a compromise early on Wednesday after marathon talks on how the bloc will go about slashing its greenhouse gas emissions by 90 percent by 2040, introducing flexibilities that will essentially offload some of the task onto foreign countries.

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Under the compromise, countries will be allowed to buy foreign carbon credits to cover up to 5 percent of their overall target of cutting emissions by 90 percent compared with 1990 levels. In a further concession, the bloc also agreed to consider the option of using international carbon credits to meet a further 5 percent of its goal.

“Setting a climate target is not just picking a number. It is a political decision with far-reaching consequences for the continent,” Danish Climate Minister Lars Aagaard said, adding that he and his colleagues had worked to provide “comfort” that would preserve “competitiveness, social balance and security”.

In a further effort to win over sceptical members, EU countries agreed for the overall 2040 objective to be reassessed every two years. They also agreed to weaken other politically sensitive climate policies, delaying the launch of an upcoming EU carbon market from 2027 to 2028.

A handful of countries including Poland, Slovakia and Hungary opposed the 2040 climate target on the grounds it would hit industrial competitiveness, but they could not block the deal, which needed backing from only 15 of the EU’s 27 member states.

The UN had asked all governments worldwide to submit 2035 climate plans before the COP30 climate summit opens on Monday in Brazil. The deal means European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will not go empty-handed to the meeting.

The talks will test the will of major economies to keep fighting climate change in the face of opposition from sceptics like United States President Donald Trump.

The EU, in particular, has prided itself on leading international efforts to curb climate change at past COPs, but climate concerns have recently taken a backseat to defence and competitiveness.

Environmental groups accused countries of undermining the bloc’s climate ambitions by pushing for loopholes.

Hundreds of environmental and human rights groups and activists penned a letter in late September urging COP30 to place justice and reparations for people unfairly affected by the climate crisis, colonialism and slavery at the centre of the talks.