World climate summit to get underway in Egypt against backdrop of war in Ukraine

Last-minute preparations are underway in Egypt’s seaside resort of Sharm el-Sheikh as it prepares to welcome delegates to this year’s United Nations Climate Conference, COP27.

Some 30,000 people representing governments, businesses, NGOs, and civil society groups are registered to attend the meeting which gets underway on Sunday.

This year’s gathering is taking place against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine which has caused global inflation and an energy and food crisis.

Many countries have had to scale back on their climate goals in the short term, and it's believed COP27 will likely see a setback in the pledges and commitments previously made by some of them.

UN warning on temperature cap

Under the Paris Agreement on climate change, adopted by 196 parties in 2016, the goal is to limit global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius, and preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels.

But last week the United Nations warned that ‘there is no credible pathway in place’ for capping the rise in global temperatures under the target of 1.5 degrees Celsius.

At last year's COP26 in Glasgow, nations agreed to review their carbon-cutting pledges annually and not just every five years, though only a handful of nations have done so in 2022.

The focus in this round of talks is likely to be on increased global efforts on adaptation, climate financing, and increased financial support to help developing countries cope not just with future impacts, but those already claiming lives and devastating economies.

The conference runs from 6-18 November.