Climate Ministers from around 51 countries had an informal gathering in London ahead of the COP26 climate summit.
British Minister and COP26 climate summit president Alok Sharma have received constructive comments and suggestions with great vigor and enthusiasm.
The minister said that the countries have consented and come together on many issues, but they are “not yet close enough” on some crucial aspects.
The representatives discussed significant issues like actions to keep achieving 1.5C below the pre-industrial level by 2030, adaptation finance, and concluding the Paris rulebook.
They planned the structure of the Glasgow summit and discussed what should be the expectations for the outcome. All of them unanimously also tried to devise ways to go forward with the conference smoothly.
“This was the most important meeting since COP25 in Madrid (in 2019), and it turned out to be an extremely productive meeting,” said Patricia Espinosa, executive secretary of the UNFCCC, at a news conference.
COP26 plans to set high targets to handle the climate crisis to protect the planet from the far-reaching impact of the disaster, wrote Matt McGrath in his analysis of the news report of this meeting on BBC.
Countries are certain that the COP26 has to manifest into practical action and mean more than mere words. Many asserted the significance of ending coal power, coal financing, and fossil fuel subsidies.
Many ministers also look forward to the Italy G20 leaders summit October 30-31 as a pivotal moment for action informed the Press release from the
Cabinet Office and The Rt Hon Alok Sharma MP.
Environment Ministers from the G20 nations also recently met in Naples to further their discussion on issues like eliminating coal from power generation. Although most of the countries were in favor of the decision, China and India opposed it.
Before the meeting, some Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs) came forward to show their support, including the Solomon Islands, Bhutan, and Ethiopia.
Moreover, countries like Paraguay, Morocco, and Canada have also come up with ambitious (Nationally determined contributions) NDCs that would help keep the goal of 1.5C.
Ministers present in the meeting also urged all the countries to have ambitious NDCs and plan long-term strategies towards net-zero carbon emission before COP26.
After the meeting, Alok Sharma said, “The steps we have taken over the past two days bring us closer to securing an outcome at Glasgow that people and our planet are crying out for.
However, fault lines remain on some critical issues, and there is more work to do. We have asked ministers to lead conversations in order to bridge divides and get us in the best possible position for COP26.
Every country must now give their all to this process; lives and livelihoods depend on it, and we have no time to waste.”
