After a tough struggle, the global community agreed on a final declaration to move away from fossil energy at the UN climate conference COP28 in Dubai.

In the end, there was only a minimal consensus: the participating states at the UN climate conference are calling for a move away from fossil fuels.

Representatives from over 100 participating countries had hoped for a clear exit from the fossil fuel era. UN climate chief Simon Stiell described the compromise as a “step in the right direction”.

Although all countries have set themselves the goal of saying goodbye to fossil fuels, the two-week meeting was unable to establish a clear roadmap for phasing out coal, oil and gas.

Instead, backdoors remain for controversial technologies and formulations that give countries a lot of leeway to take concrete action.

“The course correction that we needed has not been achieved,” said Samoa's representative, Anne Rasmussen, summing up the result on behalf of one of the most vulnerable and threatened states.

The dramatic end in Dubai sheds light on a fundamental conflict at world climate conferences: the countries that are already the hardest hit by climate change are those who do not have much bargaining power and are often ignored.

The United Arab Emirates are considered one of the leading oil states and, as expected, positioned themselves against a clear declaration of exit from the fossil fuel economy.

Whether the compromise ultimately reached actually marks the beginning of the end of the fossil era remains to be seen.