November 6, 2022

‫غلوبال تايمز: توطيد العلاقات الحديدية بين الصين وباكستان؛ مشاريع CPEC الرئيسية تتقدم على أنها “BRI ، التحديث الصيني يفيد الجميع”

بكين، 5 نوفمبر 2022 / PRNewswire / — أجرى الرئيس الصيني شي جين بينغ محادثات مع رئيس الوزراء الباكستاني الزائر محمد شباز شريف في قاعة الشعب الكبرى في بكين، وشريف هو أحد قادة العالم الذين زاروا الصين مباشرة بعد اختتام المؤتمر الوطني العشرين للحزب الشيوعي الصيني ( CPC ).

وقال شي إن الصين على استعداد للعمل مع باكستان لرفع مستوى التعاون الاستراتيجي الشامل، وتسريع الجهود لبناء مجتمع صيني باكستاني أقرب مع مستقبل مشترك في العصر الجديد، وضخ زخم جديد في شراكتهم التعاونية الاستراتيجية في جميع الأحوال الجوية.

بعد عرض النتائج الرئيسية للمؤتمر الوطني العشرين للحزب الشيوعي الصيني، أكد الرئيس شي أن الصين ستواصل سياستها الأساسية المتمثلة في الانفتاح وتوفير فرص جديدة لباكستان وبقية العالم من خلال التنمية المستمرة. وستزيد الصين من تعميق التآزر بين استراتيجياتها الإنمائية واستراتيجيات باكستان.

وأشار شي إلى أن كلا الجانبين ينبغي أن يقفا على الجانب الأيمن من التاريخ، وأن يواصلا تعاونهما القوي في الآليات المتعددة الأطراف، وأن يعملا بشكل وثيق بشأن القضايا الدولية والإقليمية الرئيسية من أجل دعم تعددية الأطراف الحقيقية، والإنصاف والعدل الدوليين، والمصالح المشتركة للبلدان النامية، وأن ينشرا اليقين والإيجابية في العالم.

ووفقًا لبيان مشترك صدر عقب الاجتماع الثنائي، أجرى الجانبان تبادلًا متعمقًا للآراء بشأن العلاقات الثنائية، فضلًا عن الحالة الإقليمية والمشهد السياسي الدولي. واتفق الجانبان على أهمية الشراكة التعاونية الاستراتيجية بين الصين وباكستان في جميع الأحوال الجوية وسط التحديات العالمية الناشئة. واتسمت الاجتماعات بالدفء التقليدي والثقة الاستراتيجية المتبادلة وتوحيد الآراء.

في الاجتماع، أشار شريف إلى أنه شرف كبير له أن يكون من بين أوائل القادة الأجانب الذين زاروا الصين بعد المؤتمر الوطني العشرين الناجح للحزب الشيوعي الصيني، والذي كان علامة فارقة جديدة. وتشهد الزيارة على الصداقة القوية بين باكستان والصين.

وقال شريف إن الصين خلقت على مدى العقد الماضي، بقيادة الرئيس شي، معجزة إنجازات إنمائية عظيمة. وقد تمسكت الصين بتعددية الأطراف، وعززت التضامن والتعاون العالميين، وقدمت إسهامات هامة في صون السلام والتنمية العالميين. وبذلك تكون الصين قد أوفت بمسؤوليتها كبلد رئيسي.

وقال تشيان فنغ، مدير قسم الأبحاث في معهد الاستراتيجية الوطنية في جامعة تسنغهوا، لصحيفة غلوبال تايمز: “بعد أن دُعي شريف كأحد أوائل القادة الأجانب لزيارة الصين بعد اختتام المؤتمر الوطني العشرين للحزب الشيوعي الصيني، لا يظهر العلاقة الوثيقة بين الجانبين فحسب، بل يثبت مرة أخرى أن المجتمع الدولي متفائل بشأن تنمية الصين في المستقبل، ومستعد لتعزيز العلاقات مع الصين”.

وقال شريف إن باكستان تؤيد تأييدًا تامًا مبادرة التنمية العالمية ومبادرة الأمن العالمي اللتين طرحهما الرئيس شي. وستعزز الاتصالات والتعاون مع الصين في الشؤون الدولية والإقليمية للإسهام بشكل إيجابي في السلام والتنمية العالميين. “إن الصداقة الباكستانية الصينية لا تنفصم. وقال رئيس الوزراء الباكستاني إن باكستان ستقف دائمًا بحزم مع الصين”.

من خلال مبادرة الحزام والطريق، ساعدت الصين باكستان في حل مشكلتين من مشاكل الاختناق التي تعصف بالتنمية الاقتصادية في باكستان – البنية التحتية ونقص إمدادات الطاقة. وأشار إلى أنه من خلال المرحلة الأولى من التعاون في الممر الاقتصادي الصيني الباكستاني ( CPEC) ، أرسى أساسًا متينًا وأرسى منصة للتنمية الاقتصادية في باكستان في الخطوة التالية.

وقال تشيان: “إن التنسيق الاستراتيجي الوثيق والفعال بين الصين وباكستان قد أعطى مثالًا على التعاون الدولي ووصل رسالة واضحة إلى العالم، مفادها أن البلدان ذات الأنظمة الاجتماعية والقوميات والحضارات ومراحل التنمية المختلفة لا تزال قادرة على تحقيق التعاون المربح للجانبين”.

وقال شي في الاجتماع إن الجانبين سيستخدمان بشكل كامل لجنة التعاون المشتركة للممر الاقتصادي الصيني الباكستاني، وسيعملان على النهوض بالائتلاف بمزيد من الكفاءة، وسيجعلانه نموذجًا للتعاون عالي الجودة بين الحزام والطريق.

وقال الرئيس الصيني إن الصين ستعمل مع باكستان لتوسيع التعاون في الاقتصاد الرقمي والتجارة الإلكترونية والفلطاضوئية وغيرها من تقنيات الطاقة الجديدة، واتخاذ خطوات قوية لتعزيز التعاون فيما يتعلق بالزراعة والعلوم والتكنولوجيا وسبل عيش الناس.

وستواصل الصين بذل قصارى جهدها لدعم باكستان في تحقيق استقرار وضعها المالي. وأشار شي إلى أن الصين تدعم مقاطعاتها بصناعة قوية في الاقتران مع الشركاء الباكستانيين لتعزيز التعاون الصناعي، ويأمل أن يوفر الجانب الباكستاني بيئة أعمال سليمة.

وإذ لاحظ الجانبان انتهاء عقد من الإنجازات الرائعة التي حققتها اللجنة في عام 2023، أعربا عن ارتياحهما لمساهمة اللجنة في التنمية الاجتماعية والاقتصادية للبلدين، وفقًا للبيان المشترك.

وأشار الجانبان أيضًا إلى أن الاجتماع الذي عقده مؤخرًا الفريق العامل المشترك المعني بالتعاون والتنسيق الدوليين التابع للرابطة قد أبرز أن اللجنة تشكل منبرًا مفتوحًا وشاملًا. ورحب الجانبان باستفادة الأطراف الثالثة المهتمة من الفرص الاستثمارية في المجالات ذات الأولوية للتعاون بين البلدان الأعضاء في اللجنة، مثل الصناعة، والزراعة، وتكنولوجيا المعلومات، والعلم والتكنولوجيا، والنفط والغاز.

أخبر لين مينوانغ، الأستاذ في معهد الدراسات الدولية بجامعة فودان، صحيفة غلوبال تايمز أنه نظرًا لوجود ميزة واضحة لتطوير CPEC – فإن الثقة المتبادلة رفيعة المستوى بين الصين وباكستان، وهذا النوع من الثقة تجاه الصين من باكستان هو إجماع قوي تشترك فيه جميع الأحزاب والقوى السياسية الرئيسية.

وقال لين: “مع وصول شريف إلى السلطة في وقت سابق من هذا العام، ركز التعاون الصيني الباكستاني على مشاريع البنية التحتية الضخمة، وتحسين سبل عيش السكان المحليين مع مزيد من التقدم في بناء البنية التحتية”.

وقال شريف إن باكستان مستعدة للعمل مع الصين لمواصلة تعزيز التعاون عالي الجودة في مجال الحزام والطريق، ويأمل أن يحظى بدعم الصين القوي في ترقية ML-1 وخط كراتشي الدائري للسكك الحديدية ومشاريع البنية التحتية المهمة الأخرى. وستزيد باكستان من تعزيز التدابير الأمنية وستبذل كل ما في وسعها لحماية سلامة المؤسسات والموظفين الصينيين.

November 6, 2022

UAE delegation to COP27 in Egypt has strong and diverse representation

ABU DHABI, The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is participating in the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27), being held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, with a delegation consisting of a diverse range of delegates, representing over 70 public and private entities, policymakers, negotiators, business leaders, a number of female and youth entrepreneurs as well as civil society organisations.

The delegation will focus on strengthening the UAE’s close partnership with Egypt, supporting the Egyptian COP27 Presidency in their endeavour to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement, as well as bridging outcomes from COP27 to COP28, the Emirates Climate Conference in 2023. The main objective of the UAE’s participation in COP27 is to highlight the nation’s commitment to a low-carbon path, which creates opportunities for sustainable socio-economic development in all countries, including developing countries, which are the most climate-vulnerable.

Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and UAE Special Envoy for Climate Change, said, “In line with the directives of the UAE leadership, the nation’s delegation at COP27 aims to contribute practical solutions to mitigate and adapt to climate impacts, accelerate low-carbon economic growth and create sustainable economic and social development opportunities across all nations, including the Global South and developing countries. We aim to highlight the UAE’s decades-long track-record of climate diplomacy and creating practical climate solutions that meet the aspirations of developing and vulnerable nations.”

“The UAE is keen to reinforce efforts to cut emissions, meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, and adopt a sustainable economic pathway aligned to Net Zero by 2050. The UAE aims to accelerate progress on all fronts: mitigation, adaptation, finance and loss and damage, with a particular focus on the most vulnerable countries. We will cooperate with the international community to push for a realistic energy transition that leaves nobody behind, as well as for immediate support for those already suffering the worst impacts of climate change,” he added.

Dr. Sultan, who is also the Chairman of Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar), a global renewable energy leader, said the UAE believes that climate action will unlock economic growth and opportunity for future generations. He said the UAE takes its responsibility to lead the UN climate process forward as the host of COP28 very seriously. “COP28 will be a milestone COP – set to deliver the first ever comprehensive assessment of the world’s efforts to tackle climate change through the Global Stocktake. This is a key opportunity to raise global ambition. To make COP28 a success, it must be truly inclusive. The UAE will ensure we include everyone in the dialogue – from business and industry to academia, youth and civil society.”

Highlighting the focus of the country on identifying implementable and pragmatic solutions to climate change, Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment, said, “As the world convenes at COP27 to find implementable solutions to address climate change, the UAE’s experience and track-record will serve as a guiding force in helping shape a realistic climate action agenda. The UAE will be the first country in the MENA region to develop a national pathway to net zero. This represents a pragmatic and vital step forward to mobilise whole-of-country efforts and build on the Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative. We look forward to showcasing our approach and expertise for a net-zero world in Sharm El Sheikh.”

The UAE will also reaffirm the role of young people and women in building global consensus for climate action. Shamma bint Suhail Faris Al Mazrui, Minister of State for Youth Affairs, said, “The UAE has established a model for empowering young people as sustainability leaders and champions and encourages them to actively take a role in shaping pathways towards Net Zero. At Sharm El Sheikh, we are joined by a delegation of youth taking part in both the Conference of Youth (COY) as well as COP27 where we will highlight the UAE’s model of youth empowerment by asking youth to lead our participation. Youth play a critical role in carrying out the UAE’s climate agenda. We reaffirm our commitment to youth regionally and globally and will work hand in hand with them to find realistic solutions to climate change.”

A proven track record in climate action

The UAE began its journey towards realising a sustainable future under the leadership of the nation’s Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. Under the late Sheikh Zayed’s Presidency, the UAE became an official UNFCCC party in March 1996 and was the first country in the region to sign and ratify the Paris Agreement, the first to commit to an economy wide reduction in emissions with the Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative.

Home to three of the world’s largest single-site and lowest-cost solar plants, the UAE has invested over $50 billion in clean energy investments across 70 countries, of which 31 are climate vulnerable states. The nation has committed to additional $50 billion in the next 10 years.

The UAE recently signed the UAE-US Partnership for Accelerating Clean Energy (PACE) to decarbonise the energy the world relies on today, while scaling up investment in zero carbon energies in both the countries and in emerging economies around the world. PACE will source and catalyze $100 billion in investments to produce 100 GW of clean energy in the UAE, the US and emerging economies by 2035.

The UAE has been the first in MENA to invest in industrial-scale carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS), the first to deploy peaceful nuclear power, and achieved the most cost-competitive wind power generation globally. The nation has pioneered the exploration of clean alternatives such as green hydrogen.

The UAE has also taken proactive and global-first initiatives to cut methane intensity and emissions, achieving the lowest methane intensity rate in the global energy sector two decades before the global pledge was made calling for gradual reduction. The UAE updated its second Nationally Determined Contributions in September 2022, with the aim of reducing carbon emissions by 31 percent by 2030.

Collaborations to accelerate clean energy transition and develop inclusive solutions

The UAE is also promoting holistic solutions to address climate change, such as accelerating investment in climate-smart Agri-Tech through the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM for Climate). The UAE pledged US$1 billion of increased investment to accelerate innovation in climate-smart agriculture and food systems.

The UAE launched Etihad 7, a UAE-led innovation program, dedicated to securing funding for renewable energy projects in Africa, with the goal of supplying clean electricity to 100 million people by 2035.

The UAE hosts the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). The UAE and IRENA joined efforts to launch the Energy Transition Accelerator Financing (ETAF) Platform, a global climate finance facility targeting the deployment of 1.5 gigawatts of new renewable power in developing countries by 2030.

The UAE committed US$400 million in funding provided by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) towards the platform, which was formalised through agreements signed by IRENA with ADFD and Masdar, the UAE-based global renewable energy leader. Masdar currently invests more than $20 billion in renewable energy projects in more than 40 countries, which generate over 15GW of clean power and displace nearly 19.5 million tonnes of emissions annually.

The UAE’s climate action relies on innovation and technology, including taking measures to enhance food security through Bustanica, the world’s largest vertical farm operated by the Emirates Group, which produces over 1,000 tonnes of leafy greens every year, and farms in Al Ain that are now producing UAE-grown blueberries and strawberries.

The UAE also supports grassroots community empowerment through programmes such as the Zayed Sustainability Prize, which recognises impactful, innovative and inspiring sustainability initiatives.

Source: Emirates News Agency

November 6, 2022

UAE President to attend COP27 in Egypt

ABU DHABI, President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan will attend the 27th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27), which is being held in Sharm El Sheikh in the Arab Republic of Egypt.

The conference will welcome world leaders, heads of government, and representatives of international bodies and civil societies, who are set to engage in constructive dialogue aimed at tackling climate change.

His Highness Sheikh Mohamed will lead a high-level delegation at the conference, which provides an opportunity for the UAE to strengthen existing sustainable development partnerships and support international climate action initiatives.

The delegation accompanying His Highness during the visit will include H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Presidential Court; H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan; Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Tahnoun Al Nahyan, Advisor for Special Affairs at the Ministry of Presidential Court; Ali bin Hammad Al Shamsi, Deputy Secretary-General of the Supreme Council for National Security; Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Managing Director; and Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment.

Source: Emirates News Agency

November 6, 2022

UAE President calls for nationwide rain prayers on Friday

ABU DHABI, President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has called for a prayer for rain, or Salaat al Istisqaa, to be performed at all mosques and prayer areas across the UAE at 11:30 on Friday, 11th November.

His Highness called for supplicating Allah to send rain, mercy and abundance upon the country and its people.

Source: Emirates News Agency

November 6, 2022

What is COP and why does it matter?

CABU DHABI, From November 6 to 18, the eyes of the world will be on the 27th UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. The UAE is a key participant at the talks, prior to hosting COP28, the Emirates Climate Conference, next year. But what is a COP and why does it matter to the world?

Historical Context

In 1949, the UN Scientific Conference on the ‘Conservation and Utilization of Resources’ formally addressed the depletion of natural resources and the need to manage them for social and economic development for the first time. More than two decades later, this resulted in the UN Conference on the Human Environment, also known as the Stockholm Conference, in 1972.

The Stockholm Declaration observed that “a point has been reached in history when we must shape our actions throughout the world with a more prudent care for their environmental consequences.” It outlined 26 principles, all of which remain relevant today.

The conference inspired the creation of the UN Environment Program (UNEP), which adopted the first international instrument on climate in 1979, the Convention on Long Range Transboundary Air Pollution. The US scientist Wallace Broecker coined the term ‘global warming’ as the title of a scientific paper four years earlier.

Evidence of Climate Change

With evidence of climate change emerging in the 1980s, such as ‘acid rain’ in Europe and North America, UNEP recommended limiting the production and use of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), commonly used in aerosols, packing materials and refrigerators, to protect the Earth’s ozone layer. The ozone layer helps absorb the sun’s radiation, preventing it from reaching the planet’s surface.

This led to the adoption of the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer in 1985, followed by the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer in 1987. The UAE signed the Vienna and Montreal treaties in 1989 and 1990, respectively.

Birth of COP

The global scientific community came together at the Second World Climate Conference in Geneva, in 1992, to highlight the risk of climate change. The UN Conference on Environment and Development took place the same year in Rio de Janeiro.

The Rio Earth Summit conceived the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the Convention to Combat Desertification. All three are intrinsically linked.

Since its adoption, the UNFCCC has become the centerpiece of the international community’s effort to combat global warming. By March 1994, 165 countries had signed the UNFCCC. The UAE ratified the Convention in 1995. Countries that ratify the UNFCCC are called Parties to the Convention.

The Conference of the Parties (COP) is the convention’s ultimate authority. The first COP session was held in Berlin in 1995, leading to the Berlin Mandate, which called on governments “to establish specific, legally binding targets and timetables for reducing developed country emissions of greenhouse gases.”

COP meetings take place annually and there have been several historic COPs since Berlin. Each gathering now receives tens of thousands of participants, and more than 100 heads of state. The formal negotiations take place within a dedicated area known as the Blue Zone.

Another space, the Green Zone, is reserved for business and civil society participants.

Historic COPs

The Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC, agreed at COP3 in 1997, bound developed nations to reduce their overall carbon emissions to 5 percent below their level in 1990. COP15 in Copenhagen in 2009 introduced the now familiar global warming threshold of 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

The Paris Agreement adopted at COP21 in Paris in 2015 succeeded the Kyoto Protocol. It bound countries to declare nationally determined contributions to arrest climate change, or NDCs. It also committed them to limiting global warming to no more than 2 degrees, and ideally no higher 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The UAE was the first Arab world nation to sign and ratify the Paris Agreement.

Negotiated & Non-Negotiated Outcomes

Since Paris, there are both ‘negotiated’ and ‘non-negotiated’ outcomes at every COP. The first relate to the text of the Paris Agreement itself. The second are positions adopted by likeminded countries outside the UNFCCC process. These help to maintain the forward momentum of the talks, particularly when multilateral government on certain issues is elusive.

COP26 in Glasgow last year was notable for mobilizing countries, and indeed the private sector, around pledges to achieve net-zero carbon emissions. The UAE announced its Net Zero by 2050 strategic initiative on the eve of the Glasgow negotiations in 2020, inspiring other Middle East nations to issue their own commitments.

The focus of COP27 in Egypt, as an African COP, will be on four areas: mitigation (reducing the carbon emissions that cause climate change in the first place), adaptation (preventing the damage caused by climate change), loss & damage (alleviating the impacts already incurred by climate change), and the means of implementing the Paris Agreement (in particular, financial support).

COP28, the Emirates Climate Conference in the UAE will be another historic COP, as it will deliver the first Global Stocktake, or GST, of the nationally determined contributions made since Paris. It will be held at Expo City in Dubai, the highly sustainable venue purposely built to house Expo 2020, which welcomed more than 20 million visitors in 2020 and 2021.

Source: Emirates News Agency