UN’s climate chief defends progress as US pull-out looms 

UN’s climate chief defends progress as US pull-out looms ByJayashree Nandi Feb 07, 2025 12:25 AM IST Share Via Copy Link His remarks came against the backdrop of the US, under new president Donald Trump, withdrawing from the Paris Climate Deal New Delhi: Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of UNFCCC speaks during a closing plenary meeting at the COP29 United Nations Climate Change Conference, in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Nov 24, 2024 (REUTERS) The multilateral process of climate negotiations has managed to resist runaway global warming despite mounting challenges, UN Climate Head Simon Stiell said Thursday in Brazil, which is preparing to host the climate conference (COP30) this year. His remarks came against the backdrop of the US, under new president Donald Trump, withdrawing from the Paris Climate Deal. Hours earlier on Thursday. climate data showed January 2025 marked the eighteenth month out of nineteen above the crucial 1.5°C warming threshold, with temperatures reaching 13.23°C – a stark 1.75°C above pre-industrial levels. The persistent heat has defied La Niña conditions. Stiell addressed the implications of US President Donald Trump’s order to withdraw from the Paris Agreement and roll back key climate policies. His comments also preceded the UN’s February 10 deadline for submission of national climate plans targeting emissions reductions through 2035. “In a world that has become much more divided, our process has managed to buck the trend. Indeed, without UN-convened global climate cooperation – with its origins here in Brazil in 1992 – we would be headed towards up to 5°C of global heating – a death sentence for humanity as we know it,” he said, referencing the Rio Earth Summit that established the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Only seven nations – the UK, Brazil, US, Switzerland, New Zealand, UAE, and Uruguay – have submitted complete plans thus far. While the UN deadline is February 10, delays are common. “We’re currently on course for around 3 degrees, which is still dangerously high. But thankfully we’ve already entered a new era. The limitless force of human agency is coming together with the determined forces of self-interest,” Stiell added. In what appeared to be a reference to the US withdrawal, he noted that when countries step back, others move forward to “seize the opportunity, and to reap the massive rewards: stronger economic growth, more jobs, less pollution and far lower health costs, more secure and affordable energy.” The economic opportunity presented by clean energy transition has become too significant to ignore, Stiell emphasised. “When USD 2 trillion flow into clean energy and infrastructure in just one year, as they did last year, you can be sure it’s not because of virtue signalling. That’s twice as much as in fossil fuels.” He highlighted India as an example, noting that increasing clean energy inv