G7 nations ‘burying heads in sand’ on climate change with ‘temporary’ gas investments

Name: Protests over nukes as G7 leaders talk Ukraine and China in Hiroshima
Uploaded: 2023-05-23T01:30:18.000Z
Duration: 3 min 8 s
Description: Protests over nukes as G7 leaders talk Ukraine and China in Hiroshima

During Hiroshima summit, nations emphasised the need to end dependence on Russian energy while balancing their commitment to clean energy transition

They said more cash for liquefied natural gas is temporary solution while replacing supply of gas from Moscow amid Ukraine war; experts say this is step backwards

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An activist wearing a mask depicting Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (right) holds a basket of mock-up coal while others depict other G7 leaders during a protest in Japan against fossil fuels. Photo: Bloomberg

Biman Mukherji

Published: 9:30am, 23 May 2023Updated: 9:48am, 23 May 2023

G7 nations over the weekend pledged to mitigate climate change while condemning Russia’s war on Ukraine, but climate experts say the rich nations have sent a mixed message for sustainable development with their call to step up investment in gas.

In its statement over the weekend, the group underscored the need to end their dependence on Russian energy, while balancing their commitment to a clean energy transition. Simultaneously, the G7 said higher gas supplies can help potential shortfalls due to the Russia-Ukraine war.

It said more investment in liquefied natural gas (LNG) – which produces less carbon dioxide than coal and oil and is the cleanest of the fossil fuels – can be a “temporary response” to the circumstances, but climate analysts said this would be a step backwards.

“The G7 is ignoring the International Energy Agency’s call to refrain from any new investments into fossil fuels, not just coal, to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees. In fact, the G7 seems to be strengthening the role of gas,” said Friederike Roder, vice-president for global advocacy at action platform Global Citizen, which is dedicated to ending extreme poverty.

“The G7 is not just burying their heads in the sand in the face of the climate crisis; collectively they have renounced taking a leadership role ahead of COP28,” he said, referring to the United Nations climate change conference scheduled for the year-end.

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Protests over nukes as G7 leaders talk Ukraine and China in Hiroshima

The G7 is an informal grouping of seven of the world’s advanced economies – Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States. Russia used to be a member – making up the G8 – until it was excluded after its annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea region in 2014.

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