Eamon Ryan, Ireland’s Environment Minister, is set to confront the Israeli delegation regarding the ongoing war in Gaza during the upcoming United Nations COP29 climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan. Scheduled for November 11-22, COP29 will gather world leaders to address climate action, and Ryan plans to use this platform to highlight the environmental and human impacts of military conflicts. He has emphasized that carbon emissions resulting from military operations should be accounted for, providing a more accurate picture of the environmental costs of conflict.
Bringing the Gaza Conflict to the Climate Stage
Mr. Ryan is one of several government ministers attending COP29, where he will take on a senior negotiating role, co-chairing international talks on finance for climate adaptation. As tensions escalate in Gaza, Ryan has expressed his belief that every diplomatic opportunity must be leveraged to address the humanitarian crisis. In a recent statement, he agreed with Social Democrats climate spokesperson Jennifer Whitmore, who argued that global platforms like COP should be used to draw attention to the ongoing violence in the Middle East. “We have an obligation on the international stage, wherever we are, to raise concern about what’s happening in the Middle East,” Ryan said. “We would look for whatever opportunity we can.”
Whitmore, meanwhile, did not mince words, describing the situation as “genocide” and calling out Israel for its actions. She also criticized the perceived hypocrisy of Israel’s participation in COP29, given its military’s significant carbon footprint. “The war in Gaza in two months emitted the same amount of emissions as 20 developing countries,” Whitmore claimed. “To rebuild Gaza will use up emissions equivalent to those of 135 developing countries.” She added that even outside of wartime, Israel’s military emissions are comparable to those of Cyprus, highlighting the need to address these issues within the climate discourse.
Leading the Charge for Climate Finance Reform
Ryan briefed members of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Environment and Climate Action about his upcoming trip, emphasizing his dual role at COP29—not only addressing the Gaza situation but also focusing on climate finance. He will co-chair the adaptation talks alongside his Costa Rican counterpart, aiming to secure increased financial commitments to help nations deal with the effects of climate change. The existing $100 billion annual pledge from wealthier countries to support poorer nations, established in 2009, was only met in 2022, well after its target date. Ryan underscored the need for a new, more ambitious funding goal, referred to as the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG).
“The impacts of climate change are far worse than we anticipated when we set that original $100 billion target,” Ryan said, noting that the new funding target must reflect the increased urgency of the crisis. He also called for major reforms in the way these funds are sourced, pointing out that the traditional division between “developed” and “developing” countries, set in 1992, is now outdated.
Rethinking Global Responsibilities Amid Conflict
The original framework split nations into two categories, with developed nations funding climate adaptation in the developing world. However, as Ryan pointed out, many countries classified as developing have undergone significant economic growth, largely due to fossil fuel sales. “You can’t just freeze the world in a 1992 division,” Ryan said. “Clearly, countries that have become extremely wealthy over the past 30 years, for example, on the back of fossil fuel sales, cannot be excluded. Some have huge emissions.”
Ryan acknowledged that these discussions would be challenging, especially in the current geopolitical climate. “We are geopolitically in a very bad place in the world today,” he said, noting that ongoing conflicts, including the one in Gaza, only add to the complexities of achieving consensus on climate action. His leadership at COP29 will be crucial in ensuring that the summit not only addresses environmental sustainability but also considers the broader social and geopolitical impacts of conflict.
The outcomes of COP29, and Ryan’s role in both climate finance and addressing military emissions, could set a new precedent for integrating peace efforts into environmental action. As Ryan himself put it, “COP29 must be more than a climate summit; it needs to be a platform for change on multiple fronts—environmental, social, and political. We owe it to future generations to ensure that our actions today lay the groundwork for a greener, more peaceful world.”
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