03:06Mandatory credit: NATO TV
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg described climate change as a 'crisis multiplier’ during a video address to the United Nations Conference (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh on Tuesday.
"Climate change impacts security, climate change is a crisis multiplier, it increases competition over scarce resources, water, food, land. It forces millions of people to flee so climate change creates conflict, exacerbates conflicts," he claimed.
"Since climate change matters for security, climate change matters for NATO and we need to fully understand that link," he continued.
Stoltenberg was speaking as part of an online discussion organised by the Munich Security Conference. The NATO chief also explained the problems posed by climate change to the logistics of security operations.
"We have a training mission in Iraq and they have experienced more than 50 degrees Celsius," he stated. "Our equipment, our uniforms have to adapt to more extreme weather. … We just have to adapt our operations, our missions, our equipment, our uniforms to climate change, to more extreme weather."
He also responded to concerns about emissions caused by military vehicles and equipment.
"Our armed forces have to be part of the efforts to reduce emissions. And if we look at traditional military equipment, heavy battle tanks, battleships, planes, they are not normally very green," he admitted.
"I attended my first COP in 1997 in Kyoto and there I remember that military emissions was explicitly exempted from reporting on emission from different countries so they were exempted from the whole equation. Now military emissions are part of what is counted but the data is not good."
"We have launched a project in NATO to standardise how we report on emissions … That’s a first step towards reducing military emissions and I strongly believe that in the future we need green but also of course effective military capabilities," Stoltenberg concluded.
The COP27 conference continues until November 18.
Egypt : 'Climate change is a crisis multiplier' - NATO chief outlines security challenges at COP27
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg described climate change as a 'crisis multiplier’ during a video address to the United Nations Conference (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh on Tuesday.
"Climate change impacts security, climate change is a crisis multiplier, it increases competition over scarce resources, water, food, land. It forces millions of people to flee so climate change creates conflict, exacerbates conflicts," he claimed.
"Since climate change matters for security, climate change matters for NATO and we need to fully understand that link," he continued.
Stoltenberg was speaking as part of an online discussion organised by the Munich Security Conference. The NATO chief also explained the problems posed by climate change to the logistics of security operations.
"We have a training mission in Iraq and they have experienced more than 50 degrees Celsius," he stated. "Our equipment, our uniforms have to adapt to more extreme weather. … We just have to adapt our operations, our missions, our equipment, our uniforms to climate change, to more extreme weather."
He also responded to concerns about emissions caused by military vehicles and equipment.
"Our armed forces have to be part of the efforts to reduce emissions. And if we look at traditional military equipment, heavy battle tanks, battleships, planes, they are not normally very green," he admitted.
"I attended my first COP in 1997 in Kyoto and there I remember that military emissions was explicitly exempted from reporting on emission from different countries so they were exempted from the whole equation. Now military emissions are part of what is counted but the data is not good."
"We have launched a project in NATO to standardise how we report on emissions … That’s a first step towards reducing military emissions and I strongly believe that in the future we need green but also of course effective military capabilities," Stoltenberg concluded.
The COP27 conference continues until November 18.
Mandatory credit: NATO TV
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg described climate change as a 'crisis multiplier’ during a video address to the United Nations Conference (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh on Tuesday.
"Climate change impacts security, climate change is a crisis multiplier, it increases competition over scarce resources, water, food, land. It forces millions of people to flee so climate change creates conflict, exacerbates conflicts," he claimed.
"Since climate change matters for security, climate change matters for NATO and we need to fully understand that link," he continued.
Stoltenberg was speaking as part of an online discussion organised by the Munich Security Conference. The NATO chief also explained the problems posed by climate change to the logistics of security operations.
"We have a training mission in Iraq and they have experienced more than 50 degrees Celsius," he stated. "Our equipment, our uniforms have to adapt to more extreme weather. … We just have to adapt our operations, our missions, our equipment, our uniforms to climate change, to more extreme weather."
He also responded to concerns about emissions caused by military vehicles and equipment.
"Our armed forces have to be part of the efforts to reduce emissions. And if we look at traditional military equipment, heavy battle tanks, battleships, planes, they are not normally very green," he admitted.
"I attended my first COP in 1997 in Kyoto and there I remember that military emissions was explicitly exempted from reporting on emission from different countries so they were exempted from the whole equation. Now military emissions are part of what is counted but the data is not good."
"We have launched a project in NATO to standardise how we report on emissions … That’s a first step towards reducing military emissions and I strongly believe that in the future we need green but also of course effective military capabilities," Stoltenberg concluded.
The COP27 conference continues until November 18.