The Big Riddle of the U.N. Climate Conference | If rich nations set up a “fund” to help poorer nations and don’t fund it … is it a fund?

It's kinda cheeky for the countries like UAE and SA to demand reparations for countries not buying fossil anymore. Nobody's business is guaranteed forever and they should have diversified long ago. And bought less Lamborghinis.

Yes. Its mere existence is progress, albeit painfully slow (recall the 100bn promised at COP15 was only reached last year). USA and some others were fundamentally opposed to the principle of any kind of reparation for loss and damage. Now the fund exists, it’s easier to negotiate higher contributions in return for some other action, step by step, without re-opening the big legal consensus process. Also, the higher the relative contributions to emissions, and the further we pass 1.5ºC, the more pressure to pay for the damage - this is a useful feedback.