BELÉM, Brazil — The European Union was notably absent from a group of 82 countries calling for a clear path away from fossil fuels at the U.N. climate talks on Tuesday.
In a moment of theater in the Amazon city of Belém, dozens of countries demanded a “roadmap” that would chart their way off fossil fuels — sending the fuels that drive climate change to the fore of a U.N. process that rarely discusses them directly.
But the EU, a self-described climate leader, was not among them.
Many EU countries backed the démarche, with ministers from Denmark and Germany taking a prominent role in the announcement.
In a statement, Germany’s Environment Minister Carsten Schneider called on the meeting “to free ourselves from fossil fuels … it can help with access to energy, lowering prices for households and businesses and strengthening our energy security.”
For the EU to back the initiative, all countries in the 27-nation bloc would need to unify behind it. The EU has recently undergone a tough process of setting new climate goals that drew opposition from countries with ties to coal and the car industry.
“This is completely in the EU interest,” said Jennifer Morgan, Germany’s former climate envoy. “So I’m quite puzzled that there are evidently a couple of member states that are nervous about this.”
EU representatives did not respond to requests for comment in time for publication.
