Climate 'Must Be Treated As Seriously As Covid Outbreak'

The climate crisis will only be taken seriously when countries realise it is an existential threat like Covid, Cop27 host's chief negotiator warns.

- Saphora Smith

As international delegations arrive in Egypt from across the world, ambassador Mohamed Nasr said the climate crisis would not wait for humanity to solve its other problems, pointing to deaths in Pakistan caused by climate-fuelled extreme flooding.

The Cop27 climate summit opened its doors in Sharm el-Sheikh yesterday in a bid to make tangible progress on a host of issues from reducing greenhouse gas emissions, to helping developing countries adapt to a warming planet.

Mr Nasr said a key goal of the critical conference was to keep climate change at the top of the international agenda at a time when countries face a litany of challenges including Russia's invasion of Ukraine and linked soaring energy and food prices.

"Everybody is saying, yes, we're committed but the national circumstances are making things difficult," he said.