UN Climate Summit Starts Under Cloud After G-20 Dodges Hard Questions
NDTV
Politicians promised to stop financing overseas coal plants, tackle methane leaks and take greater action this decade to limit global warming.
Climate negotiators at the COP26 summit were banking on the world's most powerful leaders to give them a boost before they embark on two weeks of fraught discussions over who should do what to slow the rise in global temperatures.
In the broadest sense, they got what they needed - any consensus was better than acrimonious breakdown. Politicians promised to stop financing overseas coal plants, tackle methane leaks and take greater action this decade to limit global warming. But they failed to agree on a precise date for phasing out the dirtiest fossil fuel and reaching net-zero emissions.
The reaction in Glasgow was one of disappointment. While the G-20 was essentially a discussion between the world's biggest polluters - responsible for 80% of global emissions - the COP talks bring together almost 200 countries, including those who contribute far less to climate change but stand to suffer greatly from its impact.
"This is a welcome start, but it won't stop the climate from heating more than 1.5 degrees," said Mohammed Nasheed, former president of Maldives who serves as the ambassador of climate vulnerable countries, referring to the Paris Agreement's stretch goal of keeping temperatures from rising more than 1.5° Celsius from pre-industrial levels. "This isn't nearly enough," he said.
