Pacific Island leaders urge world to put aside differences in combating impact of climate change

On Monday, officials from the Pacific Islands chastised wealthy nations for failing to do more to stop climate change while being mostly to blame for it and for profiting from loans given to weaker countries to lessen its consequences.

At a U.N. climate change summit in Bangkok, leaders and officials from Pacific Island countries asked that the world put more effort into putting aside differences in order to battle the environmental damage, particularly as their countries recover from the economic devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Cook Islands’ Prime Minister, Mark Brown, stated that the financing strategy for addressing climate change, which involves disbursing loans to lessen the effects, is “not the way to go” for nations in his region with such small populations that produce “inconsequential amounts of carbon emissions” but suffer the most from the consequences.

He urged a switch to grants or loans with no interest to lessen the financial strain on developing nations.

The Associated Press quoted him as saying, “All we’re doing is adding debt to countries that have increased debt after COVID, and to me it is actually quite offensive that we would be required to borrow money to build resilience, and to borrow from the very countries that are causing climate change.”

According to Brown, the epidemic cost his nation an estimated 41% of its GDP, or “a loss of a decade’s worth of prosperity.”

He stated that he will convey this message to leaders when he represents his small, 17-person nation in the South Pacific at a summit of the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations later this week in Japan. He said he hopes to be able to address the leaders on an equal footing rather than as “a grateful recipient” to “benevolent donors.”

Surangel S. Whipps Jr., president of Palau, concurred that financing options are “few and difficult,” and he chastised wealthy nations for failing to fulfill their commitment to provide the financial assistance they had pledged, which he claimed represented a meager fraction of their higher priority spending, such as the military.

He told The Associated Press, “We didn’t cause the problem, but now they’re going to make money off of us by giving us a loan so we can pay back with interest.” “Since you must now adapt, we will offer you money and profit from your adaptation by providing you that money. That is not logical at all.

According to Whipps, tourism is a major component of Palau’s economy and is seriously endangered by the effects of climate change. The “Compacts of Free Association,” a larger deal that will govern Palau’s relations with Washington for the next 20 years, are another important topic of discussion in the country’s negotiations with the United States. In exchange for significant assistance, those relationships provide the United States exclusive military and other security rights in the islands.

According to Whipps, the Biden administration has pledged about $900 million over the next 20 years. Whipps said he is generally satisfied with the terms, which were renegotiated from what was accomplished during the administration of previous President Donald Trump, even though the sum is “definitely less” than what his country would have wanted.

Whipps said he expects Washington to uphold the agreement, which he hopes can be signed by both sides in Papua New Guinea next week. There are some worries that the U.S. Congress would reduce foreign aid, which would then damage this money.

According to Brown, it costs a lot of money to combat climate change and create resistance to its effects, particularly for island nations with sparse populations. This is especially true for stronger infrastructure, increased water security, and increased food security. He stated that the region should spend $1.2 billion per year on climate adaptation and mitigation strategies as “a starter.”

“Building resilience requires money, and building resilience is still the fundamental solution to helping countries that are dealing with the effects of climate change,” he said.