Baerbock calls for more action in global energy transition

BERLIN – German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called for more momentum in the global transition to renewable sources of power at the opening of an international energy conference in Berlin on Tuesday.

“Time is pressing,” said Baerbock, a member of the Green Party, stressing that the global transition away from fossil fuels must be accelerated across the world.

She said the larger, industrialized countries have a special responsibility in this.

Baerbock added that the energy transition was also a matter of security, saying the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine led Germany to end its energy dependence on Russia.

Baerbock said this was important to consider in the turn towards securing the critical minerals needed for the transition towards renewables, especially with regard to the West’s dependence on China.

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At the two-day conference on the Energy Transition Dialogue, ministers and high-ranking delegations from over 60 countries are gathering with representatives from business, science and civil society.

Several bilateral agreements to deepen existing climate and energy partnerships between Germany and partner countries such as Chile, South Africa and Ukraine are also set to be adopted.

Kenya’s President William Ruto, who is also attending the event, said the world was on the brink of irreversible damage unless action was taken quickly. He referred to the new report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

The IPCC recently published another of its landmark climate reports which serves as a blueprint for policymakers. The report starkly stated that the original limit of reducing global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels was now practically impossible.