The NATO Parliamentary Assembly on Monday (Oct. 12) adopted a resolution on climate change and international security, urging members of the North Atlantic Alliance to reach an “ambitious” climate agreement in Paris this year and to “fully recognize climate change-related risks as significant threat multipliers in their foreign and security policies”.
The resolution 427 was adopted at the annual session of NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Stavanger, Norway, together with other 7 resolutions addressing NATO’s stance towards terrorism threats, the Ukraine-Russia conflict and the current crises in the Middle East and North Africa.
The assembly was created in 1955 to discuss and influence decisions on key issues affecting the security of the Euro-Atlantic area. Although non-binding on Alliance governments and NATO itself, the Assembly’s resolutions are influential in shaping policy.
NATO’s lawmakers call upon governments of the 28 Alliance members to improve strategic awareness of the security threats increasingly posed by climate change in the form of natural disasters; increased competition for natural resources such as food and water supplies; heightened migration pressures; and growing impacts on public health.
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Several climate security studies have assessed the risks of climate change to security and examined potential foreign policy responses, but the connection between climate change and foreign policy remains underexplored. The new Climate Diplomacy Report of the German Foreign Office takes up the challenge.
Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan are currently engaged in vital talks over the dispute relating to the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Nile River. While non-African actors are increasingly present in the negotiations, the African Union (AU) is playing a marginal role.
Climate change was more central than ever at this year’s Munich Security Conference (MSC), the leading international forum for senior military, security and foreign policy leaders. The release of the inaugural “World Climate and Security Report 2020” (WCSR 2020) by the Expert Group of the International Military Council on Climate and Security (IMCCS) should help policymakers take effective action.
The mission of the Munich Security Conference is to “address the world’s most pressing security concerns”. These days, that means climate security: climate change is the ultimate threat multiplier, and anyone discussing food security, political instability, migration, or competition over resources should be aware of the climate change pressures that are so often at the root of security problems.