The Paper's reporter Liu Dong
On June 28, local time, the Group of Seven (G7) leaders' meeting in Germany ended. A joint communiqué issued after the meeting said a "climate club" would be established by the end of the year to coordinate and accelerate national efforts to respond to global warming. But climate change concerners point out that in the face of the energy crisis caused by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the G7 has actually diluted the climate commitments it had previously made.
The summit comes as the world faces multiple crises, including the energy crisis triggered by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict for more than four months, growing food famine in some parts of Africa and Afghanistan, and a series of extreme weather conditions – from Europe to East Asia to North America, where many parts of the world are experiencing record sustained heat.
Li Shuo, a United Nations climate NGO observer and senior adviser on global policy in Greenpeace East Asia, told the surging news (www.thepaper.cn) that a prominent feature of the G7 summit is that the climate issue has given way to the Conflict between Ukraine and Russia, and compared with the Glasgow Climate Conference last November, there have been many "openings" and setbacks, and the main direct cause of these loosening is the energy problems brought about by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, and Europe has been forced to find an energy solution to replace Russian natural gas.
G7 establishes "Climate Club"
According to the Associated Press, the G7 issued a communiqué saying that the "Climate Club", which is scheduled to be established by the end of this year, will be open to countries committed to meeting the climate goals of the Paris Climate Agreement. The goal of the Paris Agreement is to try to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius and to be carbon neutral by 2050.
But it is frustrating that under the influence of German Chancellor Schoelz, the G7 countries have weakened their previous commitment to terminate financing of foreign gas projects by the end of the year.
At last year's Glasgow climate conference, six G7 countries agreed to end public financial support for fossil fuel projects overseas by the end of 2022. Japan joined in at a meeting in May, and the G7's environment ministers reiterated that commitment.
But this week's G7 leaders' meeting in Bavaria, Germany, "opened" to that commitment. In the joint communiqué, they stressed the important role that increasing the supply of natural gas can play in accelerating the gradual transition away from dependence on Russia's energy and acknowledged that temporary investment measures in the sector are necessary in response to the current crisis.
Li Shuo said that in the G7, Germany, as the presidency this year, has previously played the most radical role in climate issues in general. But this year, due to the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the domestic energy crisis, there have also been some signs of reversing, the most obvious of which is the expression of the natural gas problem.
Scholz said at a news conference: "Financing for fossil fuels must end. However, he also added that "in the short term, [the use] of natural gas will remain necessary, there may be investments in the transition phase, and these investments must be supported".
To remedy the Russian gas supply crisis caused by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, European countries have recently tried to increase gas supplies from non-Russian sources such as the United States, Qatar, Algeria, Norway, Egypt and Israel.
During a recent visit to Senegal, Scholtz said support for the West African country's gas production plans was "an issue worth exploring in depth." Senegalese leaders were invited to attend the G7 summit along with leaders from a number of other gas-producing countries, including Argentina, India, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Speaking at the G7 press conference, Italian President Mario Draghi said: "It is clear that in the current situation, our short-term needs will require large-scale investments in natural gas infrastructure in developing countries and elsewhere."
On the sidelines of the summit, Draghi met with Argentine Foreign Minister Fernandez. Fernandez said on Twitter that the two discussed the possibility of Italy "participating in existing projects in Argentina, installing natural gas liquefaction plants and exporting them."
G7 leaders further confirmed that they are seeking a "just energy transition partnership" agreement with India, Vietnam, Indonesia and Senegal.
On June 28, 2022, local time, the Group of Seven Summit came to an end at Ellmau Castle in Bavaria, Germany. German Chancellor Scholz spoke at the closing ceremony. Visual China figure
The energy crisis challenges climate commitments
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has warned that new investments in coal, oil and gas after 2021 are incompatible with a path to reduce emissions by limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
After the Russian-Ukrainian conflict at the beginning of this year, Europe's heavy dependence on Russia's energy problems became the focus of contradictions. With Russia's gas supply dwindling, G7 countries have been looking for solutions to energy shortages and coping with soaring prices, while staying true to their climate commitments.
However, replacing Russian supplies by investing in natural gas from other developing countries would contradict previous promises to terminate investment in natural gas.
Some European countries, including Germany, are even increasing the use of "backward" measures such as coal power to save natural gas reserves. Some G7 countries, including Italy and Germany, plan to reopen some abandoned coal-fired power plants. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has also expressed consideration for building a new coal mine at home.
Despite the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, climate-conscious people around the world have been urging these countries to continue to focus on climate change goals. The G7's joint communiqué also said that leaders "agreed to work together to accelerate a clean, just climate neutrality transition while ensuring energy security."
But the pressure is also obvious, according to Reuters, under pressure from the Japanese side, the G7 abandoned its commitment to "make half of all vehicles reach zero emissions by 2030" in the communiqué, replacing it with a less specific goal, that is, "significantly increasing the share and use of zero-emission light vehicles, while recognizing the various ways that member countries are taking to achieve these goals."
Toyota Motor Corporation, the world's largest automaker by volume, lobbied the Japanese government to support fossil-fuel hybrids while supporting zero-emission electric vehicles.
At a time when the G7 conference is taking place, more than 100 million Americans are in constant heat. Over the weekend, a heat wave swept through many European countries, which usually happened in July and August of previous years. Some parts of India have experienced the worst heat on record since March, and Japan has experienced the rare heat in June for four consecutive days. Scientists have repeatedly pointed out that the impact of climate change on hot weather is obvious, and that extreme heat weather will become more frequent and persistent in the future.
Responsible Editor: Zhang Wuwei Photo Editor: Jin Jie
Proofreader: Luan Meng