Lula at COP31 Leaders' Summit: World Talks More About Weapons and Tariffs Than Future Generations' Survival; Rich Nations Must Deliver on Climate Finance
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva addressed the leaders' summit of the COP31 climate conference in Antalya, Türkiye, on November 11. He said climate change had disappeared from the speeches and documents of the leaders of the G7 and G20, the forums that gather the world's biggest emitters, and that concern had turned into silence. "We started talking more about weapons and tariffs than the survival of future generations," he said.
Lula said wars and inflation were making it harder for governments to confront the coming climate catastrophe, but that the planet could not be left at the mercy of hegemonic struggles. The Antalya trip was his first international journey since his re-election in late October, when he defeated climate sceptic Flávio Bolsonaro to win a fourth term.
On money, Lula urged developed countries to honour their commitments and mobilise 1.3 trillion dollars a year in climate finance, arguing that rich countries grew at the planet's expense. He called on Türkiye and Australia, which share the COP31 presidency, to advance the three road maps left by last year's COP30 in Belém: climate finance, a transition away from fossil fuels and an end to deforestation. Brazil's stated goals include raising climate finance to 1.3 trillion dollars a year by 2035 and reversing deforestation by the end of the decade. Lula also said Brazil had cut Amazon deforestation by 71 percent between 2022 and 2026.
COP31 opened in Antalya on November 9 with representatives of almost 200 countries and runs until November 20, with the leaders' summit held on November 11 and 12. Chinese Vice President Han Zheng attended the summit, while the United States sent no official delegation.
(Source: Bloomberg)
Source: Bloomberg
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：巴西总统卢拉（资料图）。本站档案图复用。 / Photo: Brazilian President Lula (file photo). GSM archive reuse.
