The leaders of the 20 most developed nations pledge to limit global warming to 1.5ºC compared to the pre-industrial era and to reduce the use of coal, but fail to set a precise date for carbon neutrality, according to the draft final declaration consulted by the AFP.
“If the G20 was a dress rehearsal for COP26, world leaders were wrong,” said Greenpeace CEO Jennifer Morgan, for whom the leaders “were not up to the task.” “It’s all about black measures rather than concrete actions,” Friederike Röder of Global Citizen told AFP.
The pressure on the G20 leaders gathered in Rome since Saturday, at their first face-to-face summit since 2019, was strong. From the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, to Pope Francis, calls for ambitious measures multiplied until the last minute.
“We are faced with a simple choice: we can act now or regret it later,” Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi had indicated at the beginning of the second day of the summit, for whom the measures taken since the historic 2015 Paris Agreement were “insufficient. “.
The language used in the draft declaration is “stronger” than in said pact, according to two sources who participated in the negotiation. The G20 thus pledges to “continue efforts to limit global warming to 1.5ºC”, a goal that requires “significant actions and commitments”.
The countries pledge to stop financing the construction of new coal-fired power plants abroad, although without specifying any measures at the national level, and advocate achieving carbon neutrality “by the middle of the century”, a more diffuse formulation than the date of 2050 proposed by Italy.
This last reference is “very significant considering the diversity of the countries participating in the G20,” the French presidency relativized. China, which emits more than a quarter of greenhouse gases, wants to reach it, for example, by 2060.
The 20 most developed nations, including Mexico, Brazil and Argentina, also reaffirm the commitment, so far unfulfilled, to mobilize 100 billion dollars for the costs of adaptation to climate change in developing countries.
After the G20 leaders give their final go-ahead to the text, the ball will go to the UN climate conference (COP26), whose president, British Minister Alok Sharma, described as “last and best chance to meet the + 1.5ºC target”, during its opening in Glasgow.
“The time has come to do the maximum in Rome so that the members of the G20 contribute in a useful way in Glasgow,” French President Emmanuel Macron told the newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche, clarifying that, before a COP, “nothing is decided in advance “.
The COP, under the aegis of the UN, is the annual meeting to debate and set commitments in the fight against climate change. And the Glasgow appointment, which will last until November 12, is even more important since it cannot be held in 2020 due to the pandemic.
“Let us pray so that the cries of the Earth and of the poor are heard” in Glasgow, Pope Francis declared this Sunday during the Angelus prayer, also asking to pray so that “this meeting can give effective responses, thus giving hope to generations. future “.
The agenda of the ministerial conference has four main issues and is so complex that the negotiations were opened this Sunday, without waiting for the great speeches of some 130 heads of State and Government, scheduled for Monday and Tuesday.
The final press conference of the G20, chaired by the head of the Italian government, is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. (3:15 p.m. GMT). Then most of the leaders present in Rome will head towards the Scottish city.
David William is a talented author who has made a name for himself in the world of writing. He is a professional author who writes on a wide range of topics, from general interest to opinion news. David is currently working as a writer at 24 hours worlds where he brings his unique perspective and in-depth research to his articles, making them both informative and engaging.
