UN chief tells countries climate targets must go 'further, faster'

STORY: :: UN chief says that new climate plans for 2035 must go ‘much further, and much faster’

:: United Nations

:: September 24, 2025

:: Antonio Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General

“Now, we need new plans for 2035 that go much further, and much faster: delivering dramatic emissions cuts aligned with 1.5 degrees, covering all emissions and sectors, and accelerating a just energy transition globally.”

“Climate disasters are inflicting damages that exceed the GDP of some small islands. Droughts and floods are taking lives, fuelling hunger, and inflaming conflict. All while finance gaps prevent investments in adaptation and resilience. We need urgent action. To unlock funds for developing countries, to seize clean energy benefits and protect lives and economies — that requires reforming the international financial architecture to strengthen developing country participation.”

Guterres is hosting a climate leaders summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, where he has asked countries to announce their new climate targets to drum up momentum for the global COP30 climate negotiations in November in Brazil.

The summit comes a day after U.S. President Donald Trump used his UNGA speech to blast climate change as a “con job” and criticize countries like EU member states and China for embracing renewable energy technologies.

The world’s biggest historical emitter and second biggest greenhouse gas emitter behind China, the U.S. is currently withdrawing from the Paris agreement, the 10-year-old climate pact that aimed to prevent global temperatures from rising beyond 1.5 degrees Celsius through national climate plans.

The European Union has not reached agreement on its new UN-mandated climate target in time for Wednesday’s summit, and has instead drafted plans to submit a temporary goal, which could change later, an EU negotiating document seen by Reuters showed.