ReportWire

Tag: RSBI:CLIMATE-CHANGE

  • Cerberus heatwave fans out to Balkans

    Cerberus heatwave fans out to Balkans

    [ad_1]

    [1/3]A couple covered in mud that is believed to be curative sit at the Queen’s beach in Nin, Croatia, July 13, 2023. REUTERS/Antonio Bronic

    BELGRADE, July 13 (Reuters) – Swathes of the Balkans sweltered in temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) on Thursday in a heatwave named “Cerberus”, after the three-headed dog of the underworld in Greek mythology, that has fanned across Europe.

    In Croatia, 56 firefighters with 20 vehicles and three aircraft, struggled to contain a bushfire that was spreading rapidly due to strong southerly winds near the Adriatic town of Sibenik.

    In the country’s Adriatic resort of Nin, dozens of beachgoers covered themselves in thick black mud believed to have medicinal properties and an effective sunscreen.

    “It (mud) is definitely better than sun screen, I think protection factor is much better,” said a tourist from Slovakia who only gave his name as Josef.

    Meteorologists and doctors in Montenegro, Bosnia and Serbia, warned people to stay indoors or drink plenty of liquids if venturing outside.

    Temperatures were expected to stay around 40 degrees Celsius across the region into next week.

    Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic in Belgrade and Antonio Bronic in Nin; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise

    Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • US ‘under no circumstances’ will pay climate reparations, Kerry says

    US ‘under no circumstances’ will pay climate reparations, Kerry says

    [ad_1]

    WASHINGTON, July 13 (Reuters) – The United States will not pay reparations to developing countries hit by climate-fueled disasters, John Kerry, the U.S. special envoy on climate change, told a congressional hearing on Thursday.

    Kerry, a former U.S. secretary of state, was asked during a hearing before a House of Representatives foreign affairs oversight subcommittee whether the U.S. would contribute to a fund that would pay countries that have been damaged by floods, storms and other climate-driven disasters.

    “No, under no circumstances,’ Kerry said in response to a query from U.S. Representative Brian Mast, the Republican chair of the subcommittee.

    Kerry was testifying at a hearing on the State Department’s climate agenda just days before he was scheduled to travel to Beijing for renewed bilateral talks with China on climate change.

    The United States has backed the creation of a funding mechanism to address the “loss and damage” incurred by vulnerable countries as result of major or recurring disasters that was secured at the COP27 conference in Egypt last November, but the deal did not spell out who would pay into the fund or how money would be disbursed.

    However, the U.S. and other developed nations had pushed for the inclusion of a footnote to exclude the idea of liability for historic emitters or compensation for countries harmed by disasters.

    Reporting by Valerie Volcovici; Editing by Paul Simao

    Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Europe presses tough Taiwan stance after backlash against Macron comments

    Europe presses tough Taiwan stance after backlash against Macron comments

    [ad_1]

    April 14 (Reuters) – European foreign policy officials on Friday urged China not to use force over Taiwan, taking a tough stance against Beijing’s threats over the democratically governed island, after comments by French President Emmanuel Macron were perceived as weak.

    China in recent days has held intense military drills around Taiwan, which it claims as its own, and has never renounced the use of force to bring the island under its control.

    German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, addressing the issue at a press conference in Beijing alongside her Chinese counterpart Qin Gang, said any attempt by China to control Taiwan would be unacceptable and would have serious repercussions for Europe.

    EU foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell echoed her remarks in a statement prepared for a speech due to be delivered in Beijing at the Center for China and Globalization think tank on Friday that had to be cancelled after he caught COVID-19.

    “A military escalation in the Taiwan Strait, through which … 50% of world trade goes every day, would be a horror scenario for the entire world,” said Baerbock, adding it would have “inevitable repercussions” for European interests.

    In interviews published after his trip to China last week, which was meant to showcase European unity on China policy, Macron cautioned against being drawn into a crisis over Taiwan driven by an “American rhythm and a Chinese overreaction”.

    While many of the remarks were not new, the timing of their publication, and their bluntness, annoyed many Western officials.

    “The European Union’s position (on Taiwan) is consistent and clear,” Borrell said in his remarks. “Any attempt to change the status quo by force would be unacceptable.”

    UKRAINE ISSUE

    Borrell also said Europe’s future relationship with China depended on it trying to use its influence to find a political solution to the Ukraine crisis.

    “It will be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the European Union to maintain a relationship of trust with China, which I would like to see, if China does not contribute to the search for a political solution based on Russia’s withdrawal from the Ukrainian territory,” Borrell said.

    “Neutrality in the face of the violation of international law is not credible,” Borrell said, adding an appeal for Chinese President Xi Jinping to speak to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and for China to provide more humanitarian aid to Ukraine.

    Xi has met Russian President Vladimir Putin twice but not spoken with Zelenskiy since Russia invaded Ukraine in what Moscow calls a “special military operation” in February 2022.

    China stated its opposition to attacks on civilians and on nuclear facilities in a position paper on Ukraine published in February, but it has refrained from openly criticising Russia.

    “President Xi’s visit to Moscow has demonstrated that no other country has a bigger influence on Russia than China,” said Baerbock.

    “It is good that China has signalled to get engaged in finding a solution. But I have to say clearly that I wonder why China so far has not asked the aggressor Russia to stop the war. We all know President Putin has the opportunity to do so any time he wants to.”

    Poland’s prime minister warned earlier this week that Ukraine’s defeat may embolden China to invade Taiwan.

    Baerbock and Borrell also spoke about the risks of being too dependent economically on China, in line with comments made by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in a speech last month on the eve of her China visit.

    “We just paid a high price for our energy dependency on Russia, and it is well-known that one should not make the same mistake twice,” said Baerbock, adding that economic security is core to Germany’s strategy for China.

    Borrell said that the EU needs to diversify its value chains to reduce its dependency on China for raw materials.

    He also said that the increasing trade imbalances between the EU and China are “unsustainable” and called on China to remove market access barriers.

    Reporting by Yew Lun Tian in Beijing; Editing by Clarence Fernandez

    Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

    [ad_2]

    Source link