The Antigua and Barbuda and Timor-Leste governments have joined a growing bloc of nations proposing a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, supporting the calls to phase out oil, gas, and coal to address climate change.
The countries made the commitment after United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres asked governments to raise their goals at the UN Climate Ambition Summit.
Timor-Leste depends heavily on oil and gas revenue, which represents 70 percent of its gross domestic product, 90 percent of its total exports, and more than 80 percent of the state’s annual revenues.
Timor-Leste is the first fossil fuel-producing nation while Antigua and Barbuda is the first Carribean nation to back the proposal.
“Our battle against climate change demands collective action. Fossil fuels are the chief culprits, so the world must move away from them,” said José Ramos-Horta, president of Timor-Leste.
“The climate crisis does not share blame equally among nations. Timor-Leste and fellow developing nations contribute the least to climate change, yet we bear the brunt of its immediate environmental and economic impacts,” he added.
“Timor-Leste stands in solidarity with Pacific nations and is formally joining the call for the negotiation of a Fossil Fuel Treaty. Its mission is simple—to halt new fossil fuel ventures, phase out existing ones, and fund a fair shift to clean energy. It is more than a climate agreement between nations—it is a health, development, and peace accord that can foster genuine well-being and prosperity for all.”
Gaston Browne, prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda, said the treaty would bind countries into abolishing fossil fuel production and transition to clean energy.
“The climate crisis is the most existential threat facing all humanity. It doesn’t distinguish between European forests and Caribbean waters. Some carry the burden more than others, as in the case of small island developing states. This is why today I’m honoured to announce that Antigua and Barbuda join our Pacific friends in calling for negotiation of a Fossil Fuel Treaty,” Browne said.
“It’s a binding plan to end the fossil fuel era, a pledge to a rapid shift to clean energy, a commitment to a future where economies transcend their fossil fuel past, and an assurance that no community is left behind. With this endorsement, we send a clear message: unity in purpose, unity in action. We are proud to become the first Caribbean nation to rally behind this cause, and we invite others to join us.”
The UN’s Guterres emphasised during his UN summit speech the need for countries to step up in their climate commitments; otherwise, the world will face warmer temperatures.
“Humanity has opened the gates of Hell,” the UN secretary-general said at the opening of the event. “If nothing changes, we are heading towards a 2.8 degrees [Celsius] temperature rise, towards a dangerous and unstable world.”
A recent UN report noted that current efforts of countries to lessen emissions are not enough to fulfill the Paris Agreement, despite ongoing commitments.
“Against forecasts made prior to its adoption, the Paris Agreement has led to contributions that significantly reduce forecasts of future warming, yet the world is not on track to meet the long-term goals of the Paris Agreement,” the UN report said. “Global emissions are not in line with modelled global mitigation pathways consistent with the temperature goal of the Paris Agreement.”
“This worry about CO2, the worry about methane, the worry about global warming, is all a total fabrication by shock journalists and/or dishonest politicians.”
He criticised U.S. government efforts to reduce CO2 and methane as a colossal misuse of resources better allocated for humanitarian endeavors. Such initiatives “should be stopped immediately,” he said.
