View: Climate finance has become the Achilles heel of climate negotiations

The two-week climate conference at Bonn concluded recently and set the groundwork and tone for political discussions at the 28th Conference of Parties (COP28) in Dubai only a few months away. Was the conference successful in achieving its objectives? What implications do the developments in Bonn hold for COP28? Were there any surprises during the course of the negotiations? To answer these questions, we must first understand the expectations from this conference and whether these were met or not. But one thing is increasingly clear, developing countries, including India, are digging their heels in and demanding that finance no longer just be a promise.