The G20 agrees to a commitment to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius | Politics | DW

The G20 leaders agreed on a joint statement to be issued at the end of the summit on Sunday (10/31/2021). However, sources in the negotiations confirmed to AFP that they include a commitment to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial temperature. The goal would be more ambitious than the one reached in the 2015 Paris Agreement, in which they pledged to adopt policies to limit temperature rise to less than two degrees, preferably 1.5 degrees.

“We have to accelerate decarbonization and invest more in renewable energy. We also need to ensure that we use available resources wisely, which means we have to be able to adapt our technologies and our lifestyles to this new world,” he said. The meeting was opened by Italian Prime Minister and meeting host Mario Draghi. The draft final declaration, obtained by some agencies, adds a commitment not to fund new coal plants overseas. However, it does not give a specific date for the goal of achieving carbon neutrality. As the details of the closing statement became known, more and more voices called it tepid and unambitious.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who took part in the online meeting, said that “reducing emissions is simply not enough to solve the problem of global warming” and chose to “increase uptake of greenhouse gases and here Russia, like a number of other countries, has tremendous opportunities.” Specifically, to harness the uptake potential of forests, tundra, farmland, seas and swamps, he said.

On its second day in Rome, the G20 sought a position on environmental issues, with intense negotiations, ahead of the 26th United Nations Summit on Climate Change (COP26) in Glasgow on Monday. Negotiators from each delegation spent the night trying to reach agreement on climate issues to be translated into a joint statement at the end of the summit. G20 leaders kicked off the second and final day of the group’s summit in Rome with a tour of one of the Italian capital’s most famous spots, the Trevi Fountain, where they immortalized themselves with an unforgettable family photo, while photographing a coin.

lgc (afp/reuters/efe)
Updated at 2pm with Putin’s comments and details of the draft closing statement.