IEA executive director: Carbon emissions must be reduced to avoid climate disaster

Dr. Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, said in an exclusive interview with the Attiyah Foundation that carbon emissions must be drastically reduced if we are to avoid the catastrophic impacts of climate change in the coming decades.
In his speech, Dr. Birol warned that global warming will affect every continent and all countries must work together to reduce the use of fossil fuels, as 80% of emissions causing climate change come from fossil fuels.
“This does not mean that the demand for fossil fuels will stop, but their share in the energy mix must decrease,” Dr Birol added. “If no action is taken to reduce emissions, the world will face dire consequences such as floods, heat waves and other extreme weather events.
“The IEA’s position in this regard is clear, as a sustainable and secure energy future requires global emissions to be reduced much faster than they are today,” said Dr Birol. Dr Birol highlighted the commitments made at the 2023 Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28) in the United Arab Emirates, where all countries agreed to move away from fossil fuels, stressing that this transition will be fair and orderly.
Speaking of energy security, Dr. Birol said that after the outbreak of the epidemic, the International Energy Agency is working hard to meet the challenges posed by various geopolitical tensions, namely ensuring the amount of energy needed to maintain people’s lives while ensuring the ability to bear its costs. The war between Russia and Ukraine has led to the interruption of Russian natural gas exports to Europe, and the agency has developed a plan to ensure the supply of natural gas to Europe without relying on Russian natural gas.
Dr. Birol also noted the security concerns that have recently emerged, namely the expansion of the concept of energy security to include traditional resources such as oil and gas, as well as new issues such as rare earth elements.
Dr. Birol concluded his speech by stressing the need for a comprehensive approach to energy security that balances traditional and new challenges and ensures a sustainable energy future for all.