COP30 in Belém: A Compromise Agreement — More Funding and Roadmaps, but No Fossil-Fuel Phase-Out

The United Nations' annual climate summit, COP30, concluded in Belém, Brazil, with a negotiated agreement that urges countries to "significantly accelerate and scale up climate action worldwide" but stops short of explicitly endorsing a phase-out of fossil fuels.

After two weeks of intense negotiations, delegates adopted a text that includes several commitments, notably a call for developed countries to at least triple finance for climate adaptation in poorer nations by 2035. The agreement also commits to developing two roadmaps: one to halt and reverse deforestation, and another to guide a just, orderly, and equitable transition away from fossil fuels.

Mixed reactions from leaders and advocates

UN Secretary-General António Guterres welcomed elements of the outcome, including the boost for adaptation funding and the frank acknowledgment that the world is on track to surpass the Paris Agreement's 1.5°C target. He warned, however, that consensus-based COP processes — especially amid geopolitical divisions — often fall short of what science demands.

"I cannot pretend that COP30 has delivered everything that is needed," Guterres said, adding that the gap between current commitments and what science requires "remains dangerously wide."

Some national leaders and delegates described the final text as progress under difficult circumstances. Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra called the agreement "not perfect, but a hugely important step in the right direction," while China’s head of delegation, Li Gao, said the deal reflected international solidarity and collective effort.

Other leaders were more critical. Colombian President Gustavo Petro publicly rejected the declaration's omission of explicit wording that names fossil fuels as the primary cause of the climate crisis, arguing that science is clear on the need to move away from oil, coal and natural gas.

Small island and low-lying coastal states — among the countries most vulnerable to climate impacts — described the outcome as "imperfect" but still a step toward progress, emphasizing the value of multilateral negotiation in building common ground.

Rights groups and advocates: cautious welcome, continuing demands

Human-rights and advocacy groups offered mixed assessments. Amnesty International's climate justice adviser, Ann Harrison, praised efforts to broaden participation but criticized a lack of fully transparent and inclusive negotiations that limited civil society and Indigenous Peoples' influence on final decisions. She noted that public pressure helped secure a commitment to develop a Just Transition mechanism intended to protect workers and affected communities.

Viviana Santiago, executive director of Oxfam Brasil, described COP30 as offering "a spark of hope but far more heartbreak," emphasizing that a truly just transition requires wealthier countries and fossil-fuel beneficiaries to move first and provide grant-based finance rather than loans. Without such support, she warned, poorer and indebted countries risk being asked to transition faster with insufficient resources.

What the agreement delivers — and what it leaves open

Key outcomes include a political push to scale up adaptation finance, the establishment of mechanisms to support just transitions, and a commitment to develop roadmaps on deforestation and the shift away from fossil fuels. But the absence of explicit language calling for a fossil-fuel phase-out disappointed many activists, youth groups, and Indigenous communities who had sought clearer, more urgent measures.

Leaders and campaigners say the next steps will determine whether the COP30 package becomes a foundation for accelerated action or a missed opportunity. The agreement sets direction, but meeting the scientific challenge will require faster, deeper commitments and new finance flows to support vulnerable countries and communities through an equitable transition.