The G20 failure to make a direct mention of the need to transition away from fossil fuels in its leaders’ statement in Rio has escalated fears among key negotiators at the UN COP29 summit in Baku that Donald Trump’s US election victory has put the brakes on climate action. 

Almost 200 countries agreed to transition away from fossil fuels in their energy systems by 2050 at last year’s UN COP28 summit in Dubai, with the G7 group of major economies reiterating this pledge in their leaders communique earlier this year. 

Many climate ministers, negotiators and non-profit organisations at COP29 had hoped the G20 would send a strong signal of support for the transition to fossil fuels in their statement following Trump’s election, whose campaign slogan had been “drill baby drill” in reference to scaling up oil and gas production.