Negotiations at the COP27 climate conference reached a peak on Saturday, as a massive slate of governments reportedly agreed to a landmark deal on United Nations-led climate talks, The Associated Press reported.
The deal would create a specialized fund to help compensate third-world countries for "loss and damage" - excessive harm caused by natural disasters and extreme weather due to climate change. While the details are still being fleshed out, Aminath Shauna, the environment minister for the Maldives, told AP that there was "an agreement on loss and damage."
"That means for countries like ours we will have the mosaic of solutions that we have been advocating for," Shauna added.
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New Zealand's climate minister, James Shaw, echoed a similar sentiment, saying all sides had, in effect, come to an agreement. Shaw told AP that both the countries that would provide funding and the countries that would receive funding had been finalized, though a full list has not been released.
A breakthrough in negotiations was first reported Thursday night by the European Union, which said it was willing to create the fund. However, the E.U. only agreed to the deal on the condition that the most vulnerable countries receive funding first.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the deal was reached between more than 190 countries. Reportedly, wealthier countries want nations such as China and oil-rich Middle Eastern states to contribute the most money.
The deal marks a turning point for countries such as Bangladesh, which for decades have asked for U.N. funding following natural disasters.
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