Antalya:UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for a new "Climate Justice Compact" during his address at the COP31 UN Climate Conference Leaders' Summit in Türkiye. He emphasized the necessity for nations to embrace shared responsibility, accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels, and significantly increase climate financing.
According to Anadolu Agency – English, Guterres highlighted the importance of a cooperative global effort, built on four main pillars facilitating a "just transition" from fossil fuels, safeguarding vulnerable populations, ensuring sufficient financial resources, and prioritizing cooperation over geopolitical divisions. He cautioned that trade barriers, technology monopolies, and geopolitical tensions hinder energy transitions, escalate costs, and leave billions of people marginalized.
Guterres also called for the development of new national adaptation plans supported by international funding, emphasizing the need for universal early warning systems and community protection from environmental threats like floods and rising seas. Acknowledging the inevitability of temporarily surpassing the 1.5C warming limit set by the Paris Agreement, he urged for strong leadership to limit this overshoot to a "temporary breach."
The UN chief stressed the need to triple global renewable capacity by 2035 while reducing unabated coal power by at least 75%. He pointed out the growth in clean energy, with solar power now meeting a significant portion of global electricity demand growth and electric vehicle adoption rising sharply. Guterres argued against fossil fuels, noting that most of the world's population is dependent on fossil fuel imports, leading to vulnerabilities like price shocks.
He proposed a tax on windfall profits from major oil companies to support vulnerable countries and urged developed nations to commit at least $300 billion annually by 2035. Guterres also called on multilateral development banks to exceed their current financial commitments and encouraged them to take more risks to mobilize private investments.
In his address, Guterres thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the hospitality and organization of the conference in Antalya, as he warned that without a planned transition, the world faces chaos and economic instability.