MSC @ COP27

The MSC used its position as a platform for security dialogue to bring together international actors from different sectors, seeking to enable the multilateral and multi-stakeholder cooperation that is needed to effectively counter climate change and related security threats. Building on the MSC side events at COP26 in Glasgow, the discussions at COP27 form part of the MSC’s Sustainability Program, in which the nexus between climate and security plays a central role.

The MSC kicked-off its COP activities with a high-level discussion on climate security in the Middle East and Africa, co-hosted with the German Federal Foreign Office and NATO. Taking place in a hybrid setting in the German Pavilion, the event started with a virtual conversation between NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and MSC Chairman Christoph Heusgen. Sketching out the multiple ways in which climate change affects human and international security, Secretary General Stoltenberg emphasized NATO’s ambition to be the “leading international organization” when it comes to understanding and adapting to the security implications of climate change. Besides providing data and analyses on climate-related security threats, Jens Stoltenberg referred to two other key tasks of NATO in the climate security realm: adapting the Alliance’s operations and capacities to changing climate and environmental conditions and reducing emissions of the militaries. “In the future, the most effective military capabilities will be the green and environmentally friendly ones,” he argued.

In the following discussion between Khadija Mohamed Al Makhzoumin, Minister of Environment and Climate Change of Somalia, Jennifer Morgan, German State Secretary and Special Envoy for International Climate Action, and David van Weel, NATO Assistant Secretary General for Emerging Security Challenges, all panelists highlighted the urgency to act. Illustrating the dire humanitarian and security implications of climate change for Somalia, Minister Al Makhzoumin called on the international community to support the country in fighting climate change: “We need support and climate finance. We need it now.” One of her key demands was stronger capacities for data analysis and early-warning-mechanisms to prepare for the security implications of climate change and to prevent conflict. Both Assistant Secretary General van Weel and State Secretary Morgan endorsed this point, with David van Weel pointing out that NATO can provide added value in analyzing the security implications of climate change. Jennifer Morgan added that international peacebuilding and crisis prevention efforts need to embed climate security. Asked by the audience about the international responsibility of the Global North when it comes to addressing climate change, State Secretary Morgan emphasized Germany’s commitment to fulfil its climate finance promises and willingness to create and expand just transition partnerships. In order to provide credible climate leadership, State Secretary Morgan stressed that ambitious international climate policies must go hand in hand with strong domestic climate agendas.

Re-watch the full discussion:

After the regional session, the MSC co-hosted a dinner event with the Aswan Forum for Sustainable Peace and Development. The discussion looked at the broader geopolitical obstacles to and opportunities of the energy transition and climate action, as well as the security implications of climate change. By bringing together decision-makers and experts from governments, international organizations, business, and civil society, the discussion captured the complexity and variety of climate security risks and gave a strong impetus for deepening multilateral and multi-stakeholder cooperation. Discussants argued that while technological innovation cannot provide the sole answer to climate change, it must be part of it. The urgency to act and accelerate the path to net zero was at the center of the debate. At the same time, participants highlighted that the energy transition itself comes with significant geopolitical challenges, including new dependencies in clean energy supply chains. To advance global climate action, discussants stressed that the Global North must deepen its climate collaboration with the Global South and fulfil its climate finance promises. In his closing remarks, Ambassador Ahmed Abdel-Latif, Executive Director of the Aswan Forum, left participants to reflect on the question whether the current global financial and security architecture is fit for climate change and its ripple effects.

On the morning of November 9, 2022, the MSC hosted a joint discussion with the Office of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Climate Change Special Envoy. As the UAE are expected to host COP28, the session provided an opportunity to reflect on the targets of COP27 and the steps necessary to ensure progress on the path to COP28, especially regarding the nexus between climate, peace, and fragility. Several high-level participants emphasized that of the 25 countries most affected by climate change, the vast majority are also confronted with violent conflicts and are struggling with weak governance structures. Mariam Almheiri, UAE Minister of Climate Change and Environment, highlighted in her opening remarks that while fragile countries are the ones that need climate financing the most, they receive the lowest amount of resources.  The fact that climate-related security threats are becoming increasingly visible could help accelerate climate action, according to some participants.

To dive deeper into a topic high on the MSC’s agenda, together with the Rockefeller Foundation, the MSC invited to a high-level panel discussion on climate and food security in the Food and Agriculture Pavilion. Building on a Townhall discussion at the 2022 Munich Security Conference and a roundtable at the Munich Leaders Meeting in Washington D.C. in May, this event focused on the link between climate change and food insecurity. MSC Vice-Chairman Boris Ruge moderated the discussion between Anne Beathe Tvinnereim, Minister of International Development of Norway, Ingrid-Gabriela Hoven, Member of the Management Board of the German Corporation for International Cooperation, Matthias Berninger, Executive Vice President of Public Affairs, Science, Sustainability at Bayer AG, Ute Klamert, Deputy Executive Director for Partnerships and Advocacy at the World Food Programme, and Nisreen Elsaim, Chair of the UNSG Youth Advisory Group on Climate Change.

Participants all highlighted that climate change is a major cause of the current hunger crisis, with 345 million people facing acute hunger. Nisreen Elsaim illustrated the dire reality on the ground in Sudan, where people are already suffering from the impacts of climate change on food security. She pointed out that local stakeholders, such as smallholder farmers, often know about the problems and the possible solutions but lack the necessary financing to implement them. While there was broad agreement that innovation is central to feeding the growing world population, there was a lively discussion about the opportunities and obstacles of public-private partnerships in the field of food and agriculture. The speakers emphasized the need to strengthen complementary approaches addressing both climate change and food insecurity. Adequate financing for food sensitive, anticipatory climate action was seen as a precondition for effectively countering food emergencies as well as long-term food insecurity.

The MSC’s two days at COP closed off with a session focusing on the transatlantic climate and energy partnership. Co-hosted with Ernst & Young (EY), the lunch discussion brought together decision-makers from business, governments, and international organizations. Julie Teigland, Managing Partner at EY, pointed out in her welcoming remarks that transatlantic cooperation is crucial to foster global climate action and that the field of climate and energy gives Europe and the US something concrete to jointly work on. Participants agreed that there are ample opportunities for the transatlantic partners to advance the climate agenda together, including by deepening cooperation in clean energy technology and agreeing on common standards and regulations. But discussants also warned against potential new trade frictions related to national industrial policies and international trade policies. Pointing to the dominant role of China in green technologies and critical mineral supply chains and the concomitant geopolitical and economic challenges for the transatlantic partners, speakers argued that tensions between Europe and the US further weaken their position vis-a-vis Beijing. While bold national and international climate policies by Europe and the US are crucial to fight climate change, Ambassador Heusgen pointed out that transatlantic climate action must go beyond deepening US-European climate cooperation. Participants agreed and stressed that to provide global climate leadership, transatlantic partners must fulfil their climate finance pledges, expand just transition partnerships, and “green” their global infrastructure initiatives. Together with other concrete proposals mentioned in the discussion, the MSC will add these action items to its transatlantic to-do list.

The two days of thought-provoking, enriching debates (event overview) highlighted the urgency to scale up action against climate change, address its security implications, and manage the geopolitical implications of the energy transition. The MSC will continue to provide a key platform for discussing climate-related security threats and generating multilateral, multisectoral responses, including at the Munich Security Conference and at COP28 next year.