At COP31 in Antalya, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made a direct political argument: the influence of the fossil-fuel lobby must be confronted because the planet’s future cannot be negotiated on the terms of those who profit from fossil fuels. The intervention matters because it joins climate policy to energy prices and security, but it is not a binding COP31 decision.
ANSA reported that Guterres said there is no credible path to a safe climate without moving away from fossil fuels. He called for an accelerated, just and orderly transition, supported by large-scale clean energy, grids, storage, efficiency and clean electrification.
His sharpest point concerned dependency. Guterres said changing suppliers does not solve countries’ exposure to price shocks, geopolitical turbulence and instability; reducing fossil-fuel dependence does. That makes his case more than an environmental appeal. He presents decarbonisation as a resilience strategy for economies and national security as well as for the climate.
The criticism of fossil-fuel lobbying remains the UN chief’s political demand. The material supplied does not show that COP31 has adopted a mechanism to curb that influence, nor does it include reactions from participating governments, the European Union or industry groups. The force of the speech lies instead in its test for the negotiations: in Guterres’s view, a credible transition must actually cut fossil-fuel production, use and related emissions, rather than merely redirect supply.
Source: ANSA.
Sources
- ANSA · Top news · Source date: 2026-11-13
Independent editorial content. WUA is not affiliated with any political party. 2026-11-13