Brazilian president urges swift energy transition to curb global warming

BELEM, Brazil, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Thursday urged countries to accelerate the transition to renewable energy and strengthen environmental protection to curb global warming.

In his opening speech at a leaders' summit ahead of the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30), scheduled from Nov. 10 to 21 in Belem, capital of the northern state of Para, Lula said the main goal of COP30 is to build consensus on global responses to the climate crisis.

"Accelerating the energy transition and protecting nature are the two most effective ways to contain global warming," Lula told more than 70 representatives from governments and international organizations.

He criticized extremism and "selfish interests" that place individual gains above the common good, noting there remains a disconnect between the geopolitical context and the climate emergency.

Lula urged world decision-makers to allocate fewer resources to conflicts and more to environmental protection, emphasizing that "climate justice is an ally of the fight against hunger and poverty," and calling for COP30 to become the conference of "truth" on global warming.

He stressed the need to "take the scientific warnings seriously," citing projections that show rising temperatures will cause thousands of deaths and severe economic losses.

"Humankind has been aware of the impact of climate change for more than 35 years, since the first IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) report was published," he said. "It has taken 28 conferences, however, to recognize for the first time the need to move away from fossil fuels, and to stop and reverse deforestation."

Lula stressed that climate change is the result of dynamics that divide societies between rich and poor, and split the world into developed and developing countries. ■