Washington pledges USD 11 Billion for Climate Financing annually and addressing rising sea levels

New York

At the ongoing rate of rising sea levels, come 2025 and tens of millions of people around the globe will be displaced.

The U.S Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, who was speaking at a High-Level Meeting on Addressing the Existential Threats Posed by Sea-Level Rise held at the United States Headquarters in New York, said Climate change is melting glaciers and in turn causing sea levels to rise.

Secretary Blinken started his address by expressing appreciation to Costa Rican Foreign Minister Arnoldo André, and New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters, for their partnership and leadership.

“We’re here for a straightforward reason; this is fueling extreme weather like storms, which have become even more devastating when combined with higher seas.

Already, in so many of our countries, these patterns are upending lives and livelihoods.

Blinken pointed out that based on current trends, by 2050, sea-level rise could displace tens of millions of people but added that the situation can still be prevented now though the time to act seems to be running out.

“That’s why President Biden worked with our Congress to make the single largest investment in clean energy ever, putting the United States on track to cut our emissions in half by the end of this decade.”

According to the Secretary of State, President Biden has also pledged to provide USD 11 billion a year in climate financing to support the United States partners as they work toward their own climate goals – a pledge that U.S government expects to meet from this year 2024 onwards.

“The United States is helping vulnerable nations manage the challenges that they’re confronting right now.”

“Today, NASA released snapshots of every Pacific Island country, with information and analysis to help them predict and prepare for the consequences of rising seas,” said Blinken.

Through the U.S President’s Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience, the United States is helping more than half a billion people in developing countries adjust to the ways that climate change has already reshaped our communities and our coastlines.

This includes deploying early warning systems in 80 countries, so people can better prepare for storms and other disasters and get to safety.

The United States is also updating the country policies to reflect the changing planet.

As it happens, Washington position is that sea-level rise should not diminish a country’s maritime zones, including the fishing grounds and resources under a nation’s jurisdiction.

“And no country should lose its statehood or membership in the United Nations or other international organizations because of sea-level rise,” assured the Secretary of State.

The U.S official stated that tackling the climate crisis, slowing sea-level rise can feel like daunting, maybe even insurmountable, tasks, but when it comes to global warming, every tenth of a degree matters.

“That means that every step that we take matters too, for protecting our planet and our shared future!”