The leaders agreed to end international public financing of new coal power by the end of this year and spur a shift away from polluting fuels by boosting international finance for green projects.īut they failed to reach a deal on phasing out coal power or to stop building new coal plants.Īccording to a G20 official, the deal was finalized on Sunday morning after all-night talks among diplomats.īig exporters and consumers of coal - such as China, Australia, India and Russia - resisted a push from European and British diplomats for the group to agree that they would stop using the most polluting fossil fuel. While there were positive signals from a group that has typically struggled to find common ground on this issue, they did not commit to key goals on coal and methane reductions that would be necessary if the 1.5-degree target is to be met. The G20 is a diverse group of countries that account for around 80 percent of global emissions and have widely differing interests when it comes to climate policy. We are sending a very clear message: We are even more ambitious than the Paris Agreement.” In the agreement, the leaders said they acknowledged the “key relevance” of reaching net-zero global emissions “by or around mid-century.” That accelerates a deal that all countries made in Paris in 2015 to reach that goal in the second half of the 21st century.Īccording to the G20 official, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was attending her final meeting of the group of 20 leading economies, said the meeting was “of crucial importance, it takes place on the eve of COP26. “The fall of the Roman Empire teaches us that when things start to go downhill, they do it very quickly,” said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. But Beijing and New Delhi have responded by saying that the onus is on wealthy countries to do more.ĭuring a discussion among the G20 leaders, some clearly felt the weight of history upon them. have put pressure on China and India throughout the buildup to COP26. The result of G20 leaves space for a major fight over which countries need to raise their climate targets during this decade and by how much. “I leave Rome with my hopes unfulfilled - but at least they are not buried,' he said. Secretary-General António Guterres, who appeared downbeat as he headed for Glasgow. They agreed that was the minimum required to keep the lower 1.5 degrees Celsius temperature goal of the Paris Agreement “within reach.”

The G20 text, which POLITICO obtained, commits leaders “to take further action this decade and to formulate, implement, update and enhance, where necessary, our 2030' contributions. minister who is president of COP26, said he was 'cautiously hopeful about what I’m hearing from Rome … I know discussions haven’t been easy.' But he added: 'Countries are clear-sighted on the urgency of the science.' Speaking from Glasgow, Alok Sharma, the U.K.

Rome 2 won t start