‘Long on talk and short on action’: Papua New Guinea leader criticises Cop climate summits ahead of Brazil meeting | Pacific islands
Papua New Guinea’s prime minister, James Marape, criticized the Polis climate summits for being “long on talk and short on action” but will attend an upcoming meeting in Brazil of world leaders who pulled out in frustration last year over large-emitting countries.
The leader of the Pacific nation of nearly 10 million people skipped the meeting in 2024 to “protest against major nations” for not supporting victims of climate change. Marape will attend the annual UN climate summit, which will be officially held in Belém, Brazil, on November 10 due to “encouraging signs” from developed countries on climate finance.
“I did not attend Cop29 because these meetings were often long on talk and short on action,” Marape said.
“We are participating this year because we are starting to see encouraging signs that developed countries are ready to provide climate finance and solutions.”
Papua New Guinea is both a “victim of climate change and a provider of solutions,” Marape said.
“We will speak out at COP30 and ensure our landowners benefit from conservation efforts.”
The Polis summits have faced persistent criticism that major emitters are not doing enough to take meaningful action on climate.
On Thursday, UN secretary-general António Guterres opened the meeting with harsh words for world powers, which he said “continue to be hostage to fossil fuel interests rather than protecting the public interest.”
Guterres said allowing global warming to exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius, the key benchmark set out in the Paris agreement, would amount to “moral failure and fatal negligence” and warned that “even a temporary exceedance would have dramatic consequences.”
Pacific countries, like other small island states, are at the forefront of the climate crisis.
Papua New Guinea, just north of Australia, is home to the world’s third largest rainforest, according to the World Wildlife Fund. Poor, surrounded by oceans and prone to natural disasters, PNG is also considered highly vulnerable to the dangers of climate change.
Marape said his goals for COP30 include ensuring fair climate finance for landowners and greater recognition of forests and oceans. This week he met with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in Belém.
“We are connecting two of the world’s largest forest regions, the Pacific and the Amazon, to combat climate change and create sustainable growth,” Marape said.
The Prime Minister called for greater cooperation with Brazil in agriculture, energy and technology. He also highlighted PNG’s energy plans, including expanding hydroelectric power and increasing LNG exports to regional markets.
“PNG is young but rising,” Marape said. “We want to be self-sufficient in energy and power the region with clean hydropower. Our LNG exports to Japan, Korea and Singapore show that PNG is a reliable energy partner.”
Marape also said PNG would support the Australia-Pacific bid to host COP31 in 2026. Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese does not plan to attend the summit in Brazil this year, and the country has come under criticism for competing with Türkiye to secure hosting rights.
Environmental groups in PNG will be watching the talks closely.
Pamela Avusi, of the Environmental Alliance in Port Moresby, said although Marape criticized major countries for failing to act on climate change, the government was worsening environmental problems with its own actions.
“PNG is already suffering from decades of illegal and unsustainable logging,” Avusi said. “These practices need to stop for the government to be taken seriously at the international level.”
