QUOTES-Reaction to the final COP28 climate deal

(Adds quotes from Brazil, Colombia)

DUBAI, Dec 13 (Reuters) - The COP28 climate summit adopted a final deal on Wednesday that for the first time calls on nations to transition away from fossil fuels to avert the worst impacts of climate change.

Here are some reactions to the deal:

U.S. special climate envoy John Kerry:

"I am in awe of the spirit of cooperation that has brought everybody together."

Denmark's Minister for Climate and Energy Dan Jorgensen:

"We're standing here in an oil country, surrounded by oil countries, and we made the decision saying let's move away from oil and gas."

Samoa representative Anne Rasmussen on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States:

"We didn't want to interrupt the standing ovation when we came into the room, but we are a little confused about what happened. It seems that you just get on with the decisions and the small island developing states were not in the room."

"We have come to the conclusion that the course correction that is needed has not been secured. We have made an incremental advancement over business as usual, when what we really need is an exponential step change in our actions."

Bangladesh climate envoy Saber Hossain Chowdhury:

"Adaptation is really a life and death issue ... We cannot compromise on adaptation; we cannot compromise on lives and livelihoods."

Canadian Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault:

"COP28 reached a historic agreement ... It provides opportunities for near term action and pushes for a secure, affordable, 1.5C compatible and clean transition. The text has breakthrough commitments on renewable energy, energy efficiency, and the transition away from fossil fuels."

Senegal's climate minister, Madeleine Diouf, on behalf of the bloc of Least Developed Countries:

"It reflects the very lowest possible ambition that we could accept rather than what we know, according to the best available science, is necessary to urgently address the climate crisis."

The agreement "highlights the vast gap between developing country needs and the finance available, as well as underscoring rapidly dwindling fiscal space due to the debt crisis. Yet it fails to deliver a credible response to this challenge."

China's vice environment minister, Zhao Yingmin:

"Developed countries have unshirkable historical responsibilities for climate change."

Marshall Islands' head of delegation, John Silk:

"I came here from my home in the islands to work with you all to solve the greatest challenge of our generation. I came here to build a canoe together for my country. Instead we have built a canoe with a weak and leaky hull, full of holes. Instead we have put it in the water."

Brazil's Environment Minister Marina Silva:

"We've been working very seriously in order to reach these results ... After 31 years of debates, and for the first time, we have a result that takes into consideration a trajectory of transitioning away from these fossil fuels."

"Obviously this road map is an effort we will have to pursue from now on. Brazil's position is based on the idea that developed countries and developing countries must all be committed to having a common responsibility, however ... developed countries should take that lead."

Singapore's environment minister, Grace Fu

"I think we have to take the outcome as part of a deal that has been negotiated all round."

"Very often in a negotiation, parties are too hunkered down in their respective positions. And words like 'phase out' became a problem. ... The important part is to look at the content and the intentions."

Colombia's environment minister, Susana Muhamad:

"There were two positive things - first, having this discussion at the heart of the oil production system, and also that it was led by somebody that could speak to those countries and that sector."

Former U.S. vice president Al Gore:

"The decision at COP28 to finally recognize that the climate crisis is, at its heart, a fossil fuel crisis is an important milestone. But it is also the bare minimum we need and is long overdue. The influence of petrostates is still evident in the half measures and loopholes included in the final agreement."

"Whether this is a turning point that truly marks the beginning of the end of the fossil fuel era depends on the actions that come next and the mobilization of finance required to achieve them."

A source familiar with Saudi Arabia's position:

The deal is "a menu where every country can follow its own pathway" and "shows the various tracks that will allow us to maintain the objective of 1.5 (degrees) in accordance with the characteristics of every nation and in the context of sustainable development."

"We must use every opportunity to reduce emissions regardless of the source. We must use all technologies to this effect."

(Reporting by William James, Elizabeth Piper, Valerie Volcovici, Gloria Dickie, Katy Daigle, David Stanway, Simon Jessop; Maha El Dahan, editing by Christina Fincher and Louise Heavens)