by The current rate of sea level rise will lead to 250 to 400 million people needing “new homes, in new places” in less than 80 years, the president of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly warned this Tuesday. .
In a ministerial-level open discussion on sea-level rise and its implications for international peace and security at the UN Security Council, Tsamba Korosi cited data from the Global Climate Research Program indicating sea-level rise from one to 1.6 meters by 2100.
Korosi stressed that the displacement of hundreds of millions of people associated with this increase would endanger international security.
Champa Korosi also raised issues of territorial sovereignty, suggesting that sea level rise was caused by climate change it also raises new legal questions that lie at the heart of national identity.
“What will happen to the sovereignty of a nation or a member of the UN if it sinks into the sea? There are rules for the creation of states, but none for their physical collapse. Who cares for displaced populations? Or how do the former change in the would affect the coastal maritime borders? And how would this affect the exclusive economic zones?”, asked the Hungarian diplomat.
“With most of the world’s agriculture concentrated on low-lying coastal plains and islands, sea level rise also raises long-term questions about humanity’s survival,” he noted.
While noting that the International Law Commission and the Sixth Committee of the General Assembly have taken a proactive stance by considering these issues for urgent discussion, Tsamba Korosi called for greater climate action.
“We know the dangers and we see the uncertainties and instabilities that we are going to face. And we cannot doubt that this will open the door to conflict and discord, endangering world peace and security. And where that door is open, that The Council has a responsibility to act,” he also said, addressing the UN Security Council, responsible for ensuring international peace and security.
It is critical to invest in prevention now rather than dealing with the effects of future food shortages or migration, Korosi stressed. “I ask the Council to play its part in this collective effort. If not, I fear that the UN General Assembly in 2050 will represent fewer than 193 member states,” he concluded, citing a possible disappearance of states due to sea level rise. . .
Tuesday’s meeting, chaired by Malta’s Foreign Minister Ian Borg, also had a update UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who said that “rising seas are drowning the future”, stressing that sea level rise is a threat multiplier.
Citing data from the World Meteorological Organization, Guterres said global average sea levels have risen faster since 1900 than in any previous century in the last 3,000 years. In addition, the ocean as a whole warmed faster in the past century than at any time in the past 11,000 years, he said.
The risk is particularly acute for the nearly 900 million people who live in coastal areas: “one in ten people” in the world. “The consequences of all this are unimaginable. Low-lying communities and entire countries could disappear forever. We would see a mass exodus of entire populations on a biblical scale, and we would see increasingly intense competition for fresh water, land and other resources.”, António Guterres predicted, indicating that rising sea levels are already creating conflict.
Rising sea levels and other climate impacts are already forcing some relocations in places like Fiji, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, among others, according to the UN.
Malta, which chairs the UN Security Council this month, said the aim of this open debate is to explore how the body can address the risks associated with sea level rise in the global security architecture and invest in preventive mechanisms.
