Without alternatives, ditching coal is impossible

It was a dramatic 11th-hour decision, portrayed by some as a devastating blow to the success of Cop26.

- Hannah Ellis-Petersen

After pressure exerted by India and China, the wording of the final deal was watered down to a pledge to “phase down” rather than “phase out" coal. Alok Sharma, the president of Cop26, was on the brink of tears as he explained what had happened, and the last-minute alteration brought sharp words of rebuke from the US and other nations.

While China reportedly pushed hard for a softening of the language over coal in final negotiations, it was India's environment minister, Bhupender Yadav, who read out a new version of the pact that used the watered-down commitment to a “phase down" of coal. Many speculated it had fallen to India because that was more palatable than an intervention by China.