G20 Environment and Energy Ministers' Meeting Opens... No Significant Progress on First Day

Conflict Over Funding Plans

In Naples, Italy, where the two-day G20 Environment and Energy Ministers' Meeting has opened, protesters are demonstrating to demand active responses to climate change.
Photo by AP Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] The major 20 countries (G20) environment and energy ministers' meeting opened on the 22nd (local time) in Naples, Italy, but according to major foreign media reports on the day, there was little progress on the first day of the meeting. It was reported that a considerable number of countries did not clearly state how much funding they would provide for climate change response.

The G20 environment and energy ministers plan to discuss measures to prevent climate change until the 23rd. On the first day, the 22nd, the ministers discussed biodiversity and the natural environment. On the 23rd, discussions will continue with energy and climate change as the main agenda.

The Italian government, serving as the rotating chair of the G20, distributed a 7-page summary of the meeting after the first day. Roberto Cingolani, Italy's Minister of Ecological Transition, emphasized that particularly ambitious results were produced, aligning with Italy's goals, but foreign media pointed out that clear commitments to climate change policy implementation seemed lacking.

A representative from the international environmental civic movement organization Avaaz said, "Developed countries say they must protect the environment, while developing countries say they need money to protect the environment, showing a difference in positions," adding, "It seems that Italy, as the chair country, is not properly coordinating these differences."

Developing countries pointed out to developed countries that they should first fulfill their past promises to provide funding for climate change response. Developed countries promised at the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP) to donate $100 billion annually by 2020 to support developing countries' climate change responses. This was based on the argument that developed countries emitted a large amount of greenhouse gases during industrialization and therefore should bear more costs than developing countries in responding to climate change, and they promised financial support to developing countries. However, developed countries have not fulfilled their donation promises, and this has continuously been a contentious issue between developed and developing countries.

Foreign media predicted that since the topics to be discussed on the 23rd are energy and climate change, which deal with more direct issues, greater conflicts of opinion may arise.

Meanwhile, outside the Royal Palace in Naples, where the meeting is held, citizens and environmental groups held large-scale protests demanding active measures against climate change. At one point, tensions rose as protesters threw water balloons at the police.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.