At climate summit, UN chief urges countries to go “much further, much faster” on NDCs

With about 120 leaders and ministers speaking in New York, the pressure is on for stronger climate action plans to rein in global warming, with the world off track to meet Paris Agreement goals

UN Secretary-General: COP30 must deliver global response plan

UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged world leaders to deliver climate plans that go “much further, much faster” as he kicked off today’s climate summit at UN headquarters.

Hinting at an expected shortfall in the ambition needed to reduce emissions in line with the Paris Agreement 1.5C temperature limit, he said November’s COP30 must end with a “credible global response plan” to get world efforts back on track. 

Guterres, who convened the gathering, outlined five areas for priority action, putting energy at the top. Despite clean energy’s competitiveness, fossil fuels still dominate, he said, calling on countries to “supercharge” the energy transition by investing in grids and storage, lowering investment costs for developing countries and shifting subsidies away from fossil fuels.

“Drastic cuts” in methane emissions are essential and can be achieved quickly and cheaply, Guterres added. A potent gas with a shorter lifespan than carbon dioxide, methane is widely considered a low-hanging fruit to slow global warming. 

The International Energy Agency reckons around 40% of methane emissions from fossil fuels could be cut at no net cost. That’s because interventions like identifying and repairing leaky infrastructure cost less than the market value of the additional gas fossil fuel operators would be able to capture and sell, the watchdog said. 

The UN chief then highlighted the need to end the destruction of forests, which he described as “nature’s greatest carbon sinks”. At COP28 two years ago, countries committed to ending and reversing deforestation by 2030. Guterres said that could deliver a fifth of the needed emission reductions by the end of this decade. At the moment, that goal remains way off track as forest loss keeps rising. 

Guterres also called for governments to urgently deploy new technologies that can cut emissions from steel and cement production, as well as heavy transport. Those sectors are generally considered harder to decarbonise because they require substantial amounts of energy, and efforts to make them greener rely on less mature, or more expensive, solutions like hydrogen or alternative fuels. 

Finally, Guterres made an appeal for climate justice. The finance gaps preventing investment in climate resilience across the developing world should be plugged, he said. That means reforming the international financial architecture, offering “effective” debt relief, raising contributions to the loss and damage fund, and boosting adaptation finance. 

Brazil’s president: Submitting NDCs is “an obligation”

Opening the summit together with the UN chief, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva urged countries to submit their new climate plans (Nationally Determined Contributions – NDCs) before COP30, which is happening in the Brazilian state of Pará this November. 

“The submissions of NDCs is not an option. As it was made clear by the International Court of Justice, it is an obligation,” he said referring to its advisory opinion on climate change and human rights handed down in July. 

He added that only by having all countries respect their commitments and submit their NDCs, will the world know where it stands in the battle against climate change. No one is safe from the effects of it, he said, not even the countries that are part of what he called “multilateral denialism”.

As he spoke, only 47 countries had presented their plans. 

Brazil was the second country to present its NDC, last November. It aims to reduce emissions of all greenhouse gases by between 59% and 67% across all sectors of the economy and end deforestation by 2030. 

Lula championed multilateralism in multiple parts of his speech, saying that COP30 can be “the stage for a decisive moment in” its history. “I call on the countries that have not yet submitted their NDCs. The success of COP30 in Belém depends on you.”

He also said that if the world doesn’t come together and take decisions that respect what science says, civil society will stop trusting its leaders, “and instead of strengthening the struggle against global warming, we are going to help discredit multilateralism policies and in democracy. And all of us will lose because denialism may actually win.”

China unveils 2035 emissions-cutting goal of 7-10%

China announced a much-anticipated new target to reduce its emissions – the first to cut them in absolute terms. It said it will aim for a 7-10% cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2035 compared to “peak” levels, without specifying which year that would be.

Experts said that pledge is not enough to align China’s efforts with the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C. 

In a video message, Chinese President Xi Jinping told world leaders that the “green and low carbon transition is the trend of our time”, despite “some countries acting against it”.

“China will by 2035 reduce economy-wide net greenhouse gas emissions by 7-10% from peak levels, striving to do better,” the Chinese leader announced.

The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) has warned that only emissions cuts of around 30% by 2035 by China would be consistent with the 1.5C limit. 

A range, such as the one delivered by Xi at the New York summit, could be interpreted as “the lower bound is effectively the guarantee, while the upper bound represents potential ambition”, it said.

The baseline year for the target – a key measure for how ambitious the target is – was not clarified in Xi’s announcement. The country will take as reference the “peak” in its emissions, with some experts saying that could be as early as last year or this year.

China’s rapid renewable energy rollout has kept the country on track to meet its existing goal of peaking carbon pollution before the end of the decade. It plans to reach net zero by 2060.

The world’s largest carbon polluter, China is responsible for about a third of global emissions. As countries are expected to deliver stronger climate plans at the climate summit, China’s new nationally determined contribution (NDC) has been keenly awaited and is viewed as an indicator of global climate ambition.

The Chinese president also announced a target to “increase the share of non-fossil fuels in total energy consumption to over 30%”, and “expand the installed capacity of wind and solar power to over six times the 2020 levels, striving to bring the total to 3,600 gigawatts” .

In addition, he pledged to “scale up the total forest stock volume to over 24 billion cubic metres”, make EVs the “mainstream in the sale of new vehicles”, and expand China’s emissions trading market to cover “major emitting sectors”.

European Union promises to submit formal NDC before COP30

To no-one’s surprise, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the bloc’s 2035 target would “range between 66% and 72%” below 1990 levels and promised to formally submit it before COP30.

“The clean transition is moving on and let me assure you that Europe will stay the course on our climate ambition,” she said. 

She also plugged the EU’s support for clean cooking and other climate finance projects overseas. “No mother, no child should die because [of] simply cooking dinner under abhorrent circumstances”, she said.

Von der Leyen could only give an emissions-reduction range – known as a “statement of intent” – because the European Union has not yet been able to agree exact targets for 2035 or 2040, on the road to meeting its overarching goal of net zero by 2050.

In July, the European Commission, the bloc’s executive arm, proposed a goal to cut emissions 90% on 1990 levels by 2040. That would have formed the basis for the 2035 target.

But the 2040 goal still needs approval from the EU’s other two arms – the European Parliament and the European Council, which represents member states.

At a meeting last week in Brussels, environment ministers from the bloc’s 27 member states said they had been unable to agree on the targets, asking heads of state to give them a steer at a European Council meeting in October.

Thomas Gelin, a climate campaigner with Greenpeace EU, criticised the European Union for failing to approve its NDC in time for Wednesday’s summit. 

“Coming empty-handed… is an abdication of the EU’s climate leadership. It’s a huge embarrassment and ignores Europe’s responsibility to act after enriching itself over decades through carbon pollution,” he said, calling on the bloc to urgently agree on “a real climate target in line with science”.

Small island states call for binding methane reduction pact

Leaders of small island states called in New York for a “globally binding methane reduction agreement”, which they argue could give a near-term boost on the road to fully implementing more complex climate plans.

“This makes sense for the oil and gas people. It makes sense for the planet. It makes sense to the farmers, it makes sense to the planet. And quite frankly, we cannot continue as if things are still the same. If we want the NDCs to be properly applied, we have to buy time,” said Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley.

Methane is a short-lived greenhouse gas that is more than 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide (CO2). Experts say cutting methane emissions is a “low hanging fruit” in climate mitigation, as it would make a big difference with relatively small actions.

At a global level, methane emissions come mainly from the agriculture sector (40%), the oil and gas sector (35%) and waste (20%).

Since COP26 in Glasgow, 111 countries have signed up to the Global Methane Pledge – which aims to cut methane emissions by 30% by 2030, compared to 2020 levels. 

In Dubai, at COP28, a group of 55 major oil and gas companies pledged to reach “near-zero methane emissions by 2030” in their drilling operations. But small islands called on Wednesday for even more ambitious actions.

“We had a voluntary agreement on methane out of Dubai. That is not enough. We need a legally binding global agreement for methane reduction,” Mottley said.

COP30 CEO Ana Toni confirmed in a statement that methane will be a priority at the UN climate summit in Belem. “We truly expect COP30 to be a major platform to discuss the issue and put the focus on methane. This is one of our main action agendas,” she told another dialogue at the UN on Wednesday.

Feleti Teo, the prime minister of Tuvalu, also called for a “binding commitment” to step up methane reductions, and urged high-emitting countries to transition away from fossil fuels. 

Both Teo and Marshall Islands President Hilda Heine referenced a recent advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which says that countries failing to cut emissions could be held accountable. Teo said “inaction is not only immoral but unlawful”.

“Fellow leaders and especially those of you from the G20, if the Marshall Islands can deliver an ambitious NDC so can you,” said Heine. “In fact, as the ICJ decision confirms, you are legally required to. You must deliver stronger NDCs that can meet 1.5C and can say how you will transition away from fossil fuels.”

Türkiye and Australia reinforce rival bids to host COP31 

The ongoing rivalry between Türkiye and Australia to host the COP31 UN climate summit in 2026 ramped up in New York, with the leaders of both countries – speaking one after the other – repeating their desire to organise the annual conference on their soil.

Türkiye’s Tayyip Erdogan spoke first, announcing a new target for his country to cut its greenhouse gas emissions 466 million tonnes by 2035 to 643 million tonnes – without specifying the baseline – and talked up its efforts to increase renewables in the energy mix, boost EV production and invest in railways. He said international finance and technology cooperation would be essential to achieve Türkiye’s goals.

“We hope to crown all these efforts by hosting the 31st COP in 2026,” he added. 

Australia, for its part, also outlined its recently announced 2035 NDC – a cut of between 62% and 70% on 2005 levels, which has been criticised by environmentalists as insufficient.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spoke of the extreme weather and bushfires suffered by his people, adding “we can do more than just guard against the very worst”.

He said clean energy is “key” for Australia and could underpin “new prosperity” for the growing economies of Indo-Pacific nations, which are partnering with Australia in its bid to host COP31. 

“We want to bring the world with us on climate change,” he added, saying “together we cannot fail”.

With neither Türkiye nor Australia backing down on their bids for COP31, the fight could rumble on until COP30 taking place in Brazil later in November, which is the deadline for a decision to be made.

Australia is thought to have far more support in the “Western Europe and Other” group of countries which will choose the winner. The COPs rotate around different regions of the world.

The Guardian newspaper reported that Australia’s climate change and energy minister Chris Bowen has been lobbying the Turkish government to drop its rival bid, appearing at a zero waste event with Türkiye’s first lady in New York, while Albanese is seeking a meeting with Erdoğan as part of the negotiations.

Cover photo:  Secretary-General António Guterres addresses the Climate Summit 2025, a high-Level special event on Climate Action at UNHQ in New York, September 24, 2025. (Photo: UN Photo/Manuel Elias)