Nearly All Nations Miss UN Deadline for New Climate Change Targets

In a significant blow to global climate action, nearly all nations have missed the United Nations’ deadline to submit new targets for reducing carbon emissions, with just 10 of nearly 200 countries meeting the February 10th requirement. The Paris Agreement requires countries to submit updated, more ambitious plans to cut heat-trapping emissions by 2035, along with specific strategies on how to achieve them. Even as global pressure ramps up on major economies, following the latest pullback by the United States from its climate commitments, barely any nations have risen to fulfill their promises.

The missed deadline is a significant setback in the fight against global warming, as emissions continue to rise. The world needs to cut its carbon output almost in half by the end of the decade if it’s going to avoid exceeding the limits on global warming set under the Paris Agreement. UN climate Chief Simon Stiell labeled the new national pledges “the most important policy documents of this century,” amid appeals for countries to raise ambition.

This deadline, overstepping, really calls into question how seriously the global community is willing to take necessary actions to stem the rapidly worsening climate crisis, whose impacts on future generations increasingly hang in the balance.