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2h ago

EU Leaders Weigh Revision Clause for 2040 Climate Target as Summit Opens

Leaders face pressure to match the Commission’s 90% plan with safeguards for competitiveness.

European Union flags flutter outside the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium July 16, 2025. REUTERS/Yves Herman
EU flags flutter in front of the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium October 2, 2019. REUTERS/Yves Herman
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Overview

  • Draft summit conclusions seen by Reuters propose a revision clause that could allow the 2040 goal to be adjusted later for reasons including new science, technology or competitiveness.
  • The text calls for additional enabling conditions, and the Commission has floated easing the corporate sustainability law and an upcoming carbon price on transport and heating fuels.
  • Ursula von der Leyen has offered concessions and promised tweaks to address economic concerns while seeking to protect the core of the EU’s climate framework.
  • Nineteen countries are pressing for broader deregulation, with Poland seeking to delay a fuel carbon levy and Italy pushing changes to the 2035 combustion‑engine phaseout.
  • France and Latvia warn that forests and farmland may not deliver expected carbon removals, and diplomats do not expect a decision at this meeting as talks aim to shape a deal before COP30.