UN Chief Calls on Major Polluters to Cut Emissions as Pacific Islands Face Rising Sea Levels and Climate Crises

UN Secretary-General António Guterres, speaking at the Pacific Island Forum Leaders Meeting in Tonga, emphasized the critical responsibility of major polluters to reduce their emissions to prevent a global catastrophe.

He highlighted the extreme vulnerability of the Pacific region to climate change, noting the profound injustice faced by small island nations that contribute little to global warming but bear its worst consequences.

Guterres warned that rising sea levels are a global threat, as detailed in recent UN reports, and that these changes are already dramatically affecting the Pacific islands through rising sea levels, ocean warming, and acidification.

Guterres underscored that the root cause of these environmental crises is the excessive emission of greenhouse gases, predominantly from burning fossil fuels. The climate challenges facing the Pacific islands were starkly illustrated by natural events during the forum, including heavy rains that flooded the venue and an earthquake that struck the region.

Despite these adversities, local leaders and communities, including climate advocacy groups, demonstrated their resilience and determination to fight against the rising sea levels, emphasizing the need for global action.

The UN’s recent reports reveal that global sea levels are rising at an unprecedented rate, with the tropical Pacific experiencing particularly rapid increases. Guterres stressed the importance of regional and global leaders, particularly from high-emission countries like Australia, to witness firsthand the impacts of climate change on Pacific communities.

He pointed out the disparity in international financial support, which often fails to adequately address the needs of small, developing island states, further exacerbating the injustices they face.

Guterres’s visit to Tonga is his second to the Pacific Islands Forum, where he observed the growing commitment among Pacific nations to combat climate change despite limited resources and inadequate international support.

He expressed frustration with the slow and complex international financial systems that delay essential aid to these vulnerable regions. The Secretary-General called for greater solidarity and increased funding for adaptation efforts to ensure the survival of these island nations.

Finally, Guterres criticized major global emitters, including G20 countries and companies responsible for significant carbon emissions, urging them to take immediate action to reverse the current trajectory.

He warned that without significant reductions in emissions, the world is on track to exceed the 1.5°C warming limit set by the Paris Agreement, leading to irreversible damage to critical ice sheets and triggering widespread environmental disasters. Guterres emphasized that achieving these emission reductions is essential to averting catastrophic outcomes and preserving the future of vulnerable regions like the Pacific islands.