Larger Countries Historically Not Doing Its Part

Ambassador Carlos Fuller agrees that the larger countries, that are historically responsible for the climate change issue facing the world today, have not been doing enough. In fact, he says that they have exacerbated the situation.  And while they may not be suffering the immediate impacts of climate change, they are certainly experiencing it indirectly.

Carlos Fuller, Belize’s Lead Negotiator, COP27

Carlos Fuller

“We continue to press on the issue of historical responsibility. Yes, they got their development through the use of fossil fuels and so they created the problem, maybe inadvertently at the beginning, but since 1992 when they had the convention established in Rio, then they knew better then.  And in fact, the agreement in Rio in 1992 was that by the year 2000, their levels of emissions would go back to 1990 levels; in fact, it has continued to skyrocket. They have not lived up to their obligations and we take them to task on that issue. We also try to remind them, if you don’t address the issue now, you’re seeing what happens in North Africa with all the refugees going northward; you are seeing in Central America all the refugees going northward. They will feel the impact either directly – well both directly because of the forest fires, the hurricanes and the flooding and so on and indirectly as refugees start to flood their borders because even worse impacts in our area.”