Page 6 - Issue 72

V O L .1 E L I T E ISSUE 72

when President Mubarak traveled to Russia As the Climate Conference (COP27)
under President Putin’s tenure. This historic approached, I was asked to return from the
visit revived the spirit of friendship and United States, where I was visiting my daughter,
cooperation between the two nations, allowing to assist in the substantive and organizational
both sides to move beyond the bitterness left by arrangements for the conference, which
the 1972 expulsion of Soviet experts and achieved great success witnessed by the world.
instead focus on shared interests, inaugurating a This experience allowed me to witness firsthand
new contemporary phase of partnership. To the strategic transformation of environmental
crown the success, President Putin made a and climate issues: from being narrowly
successful visit in 2004 which was the first of its technical and focused on pollution and other
kind during the Russian era and the first in specific aspects to becoming more complex,
forty years at this level. This resulted in intricately intertwined with every sector of
transforming of relations between the two production and services, within a
countries to a new maturity, which led to an comprehensive international framework that
increase in the volume of trade relations from has taken shape since the Paris Climate
$300 million to $2 billion, increase in the Agreement of 2015.
number of tourists from hundreds to From here emerged a central challenge: to strike
thousands, and launching of cooperation in a balance between reducing harmful emissions,
various new fields. which’s now a major strategic priority closely
tied to sustainable development and the future
of the global economy, and maintaining the
wheels of production, while also ensuring
justice between the major industrial nations, the
principal contributors to emissions, and the
developing countries, which contribute the least
yet bear the heaviest burden of the damage.
Hence, the concept of "Energy Transition"
Q3: In light of your work as an advisor to the namely, moving towards clean sources without
Minister of Environment, what are the most directly harming the interests of fossil fuel-
prominent environmental challenges currently producing countries, and preserving the
facing Egypt, and what measures have been taken interests of affected developing countries alike.
to reduce them? It is worth noting that one of the most
My experience working as an advisor to the important achievements of the Sharm El-
Minister of Environment was unique, and it the Sheikh Conference was the establishment of the
only exception to my usual career in the "Loss and Damage Fund" to compensate
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with the exception developing countries, and to consolidate the
of President Mubarak's appointment me in concept of a just transition that requires
2010 as Chairman of the Foreign Relations advanced technology and huge investments.
Committee in the People's Assembly. Yet my Despite the exceptional challenges imposed by
connection to environmental issues did not the Covid-19 pandemic, Egypt's hosting of the
begin at that moment; it extended back many Climate Conference on behalf of the African
years. I had known Dr. Yasmine Fouad even Continent represented a remarkable success, as
before she assumed her ministerial post, and more than 50,000 participants from around the
from the very beginning I recognized in her a world participated in it, which crowned the
remarkable figure, deeply engaged with efforts of the political leadership, especially
environmental questions in a thoughtful and since President Sisi assumed the presidency of
substantive way. the African Union in 2019. 6