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The Editorial Analysis- Wrong Forum

Wrong Forum- Relevance for UPSC Exam

  • GS Paper 2: International Relations- Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate.
  • GS Paper 3: Environment- Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation.

The Editorial Analysis- Wrong Forum_3.1

 

Wrong Forum- Draft resolution on Climate Change

  • Recently, India voted against the UN Security Council (UNSC) on a draft resolution on climate change.
  • The draft resolution on climate change had the support of a majority of the UNSC members but was voted down by India and Russia (it has veto powers) while China abstained.

The Editorial Analysis- Wrong Forum_4.1

 

Wrong Forum- India voted against UNSC Climate Resolution

  • Background: Germany had circulated a similar draft last year which was never put to vote in the Security Council as the Trump administration opposed it.
  • About: draft resolution on climate change was piloted by Ireland and Niger. Through this, the developed world is pushing to include “climate security” in the agenda of the UNSC.
  • Arguments in Favour: Climate Change is creating security risks in the world, which will exacerbate in the future with water shortage, migration and the destruction of livelihoods.
    • Supporters believe that due to this reason Climate Security should be included in the UNSC Mandate.
  • Grounds of Opposition:
    • It is a reflection of India’s long-held opposition to expanding the UNSC’s mandate into areas that are already being dealt with by other multinational fora.
    • UNSC’s primary responsibility is “maintenance of international peace and security” and climate change-related issues are outside its ambit.

India Votes Against the UN Resolution of Climate Change

 

Wrong Forum- Present Mechanism

  • UNFCCC Role: Currently, all matters related to climate change are being discussed in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), a specialized agency of the UN.
    • UNFCCC has over 190 members.
    • UNFCCC has put in place an international approach to combat global climate change.
  • Performance of UNFCCC: its framework has made progress in tackling climate change. It is this process that led to the-
    • Kyoto Protocol,
    • Paris Agreement and
    • Recent COP26 summit (Glasgow Summit)
  • Key Concern: Decision-making at UNFCCC conferences is slow and there has to be faster collective action to tackle climate change and associated challenges.

 

Impact of bringing Climate Security within UNSC’s Mandate

  • Creating Imbalance: It will also give more powers to the world’s industrialized countries, which hold veto powers, to decide on future action on climate-related security issues.
  • Economic Disparity: it is wrong to look at climate change through the prism of security. Each nation faces different challenges in transitioning into a greener economy.
  • Elite Representation: UNSC has only five permanent members who hold veto powers. An important issue like climate security can’t be left to only their decision-making discretion.

 

 

Wrong Forum- Way Forward

  • Fulfilling the Prior Commitments: Developed Countries, all big polluters, have not met the promises they made with regard to climate action.
    • They must fulfill them at the earliest for ensuring climate justice and security.
  • Assistance to Least Developed and Developing Countries: Developed countries must provide financial and technical assistance to the least developed and developing countries.
    • This will encourage them to keep their climate promises.
  • Reforming UNFCCC: UNFCCC should make sure that the promises made by member countries, especially the powerful ones, in previous conferences are kept.
    • UNFCCC forum should also expand the scope of discussions to include climate-related security issues.

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