HS Environment | Biden: Russia’s war only increases the rush to get off fossil energy

of the United States presidential Joe Biden according to Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine increases the urgency of climate action.

“The Russian war only increases the urgency to move away from dependence on fossil fuels,” Biden stated on Friday in Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh, where the UN climate summit is taking place.

Europe’s dependence on Russian fossil energy has given Russia leverage against the West as the offensive continues.

Biden’s visit to Egypt is quick. It was still interpreted as a sign of US commitment.

According to Biden, the changing climate threatens world civilizations in many different ways.

“The climate crisis is about human, financial, environmental and national security, and life on Earth in general,” he stated.

of Egypt the climate meeting will take place just one year after the big climate meeting in Glasgow. The reason for the frequent pace of meetings is that the goal set in Paris in 2015 of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees is slipping out of reach.

Climate scientists have considered 1.5 degrees as a “safety limit”, exceeding which would make the consequences of climate change significantly more serious and unpredictable.

The planet has already warmed an average of 1.2 degrees compared to pre-industrial times. In Europe, the warming has been double the average, and in the northernmost Europe even faster.

According to the climate panel IPCC, the warming observed in recent decades is probably due to this almost entirely due to human actionssuch as greenhouse emissions, land use changes and human-caused deforestation.

Read more: Today the first part of the expected report of the international climate panel is published – at least these signs of warming are worth watching

of the UN Environment Organization According to the Unep report there is no longer a “credible path” to sticking to the 1.5 degree goal. According to the organization, the planet is currently warming by an average of 2.4–2.6 degrees by the end of the century.

That is why the expectations for the meeting in Egypt are high.

The AFP news agency cited a study just published in the Earth System Science Data journal, according to which emissions from fossil fuels will increase by 1 percent in 2022, thus reaching an all-time record.

Biden recalled About the recent “inflation reduction law” of the United States, which was practically the largest climate investment in the history of the United States.

Actions against climate change, such as supporting renewable energy sources and electric cars, were allocated 369 billion dollars in the package.

Read more: 369 billion for the environment – because of Biden’s tactical choice, not even Trump could cancel the new climate package

Biden appealed to all the participants of the meeting. The United States is now the second largest emitter of greenhouse gases after China. Historically calculated, it is clearly the largest source country of emissions.

“The United States has acted, everyone must act. It is the duty and responsibility of international leaders,” Biden said.

One compensations to be paid to developing countries for adapting to climate change and the damage it has already caused are still a pressing theme in the climate negotiations.

The biggest contributors to climate emissions are mainly rich countries, especially considering historical emissions. The biggest consequences, such as extreme weather phenomena and difficulties in food production and water supply, are felt most strongly in the global south in the world’s poorest countries.

That’s why the Paris Agreement in 2015 promised developing countries $100 billion in annual climate finance. The promise has never been kept.

Now, according to the news agency AFP, Biden promised 11.4 billion dollars from the United States to this climate fund. The promise may be in jeopardy, as power in the lower house of the United States Congress is shifting from Biden’s party, from the Democrats to the Republicans. Climate is a less important issue for Republicans than for Democrats.