The prime minister of Barbados has told a major climate summit that high-emitting countries would be committing what could amount to "climate genocide" without greater action to reduce carbon pollution.
The leader of the small Caribbean island told the Climate Ambition Summit - co-hosted by Britain, France and the United Nations - the level of climate action by the world's major emitters in the coming years would determine the fate of low-lying countries like hers.
“At the global level we need to move from placatory rhetoric to real effective action or numerous nations across the world will be robbed of their future," Mia Mottley said.
“I would like to believe that the major emitters are not capable of what would be close to climate genocide. I would like to believe that we are visible and indispensable for them.”
The summit, held remotely and which marks five years since the 2015 Paris climate deal, comes a year before the United Nations COP 26 climate conference to be held in Glasgow.
The Paris deal enjoined nations to limit warming to "well below" 2C through sweeping cuts to greenhouse gas emissions.
But progress has stalled even in the face of growing public anger over the state of the planet and a string of scientific reports warning of the dangers of inaction.
“Our optimism and joy in Paris now seems short-lived. Global greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise unabated and our window to end the crisis is closing,” Ms Mottley said, adding that the coronavirus pandemic was consuming resources that had been intended for emissions reduction projects.
In a best-case scenario, she noted, her nation aimed to eliminate fossil fuels by 2030 through an “energy revolution” that would put solar panels on roofs and electric vehicles in garages.
UN chief Antonio Guterres used his address to the summit to urge all governments to declare a "state of climate emergency" and make good on their promises to slash carbon pollution as they recover from the pandemic.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison had initially been invited to speak at the summit, but the offer was later retracted over diplomatic concerns his government was not pulling its weight on climate change.
Mr Morrison shrugged off the snub on Thursday, telling parliament Australia’s climate change policy would be set in the national interest and “not to get a speaking slot at some international summit".
He was said to be planning to use the speaking slot to announce Australia would not use so-called carryover credits from the Kyoto agreement to meet its Paris promises.
On Friday night during a Pacific islands forum, he gave his strongest indication yet Australia would abandon the plan.
With AFP and Reuters.
