Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday called for grant-based finance and improved resilience and adaptation funds for climate-vulnerable countries.
He made the remarks during his address at the COP31 summit, being held in Turkiye's Antalya. This year's summit focuses on transitioning toward a low-carbon future.
Delegates from nearly 200 countries are meeting in the Mediterranean resort city of Antalya as global greenhouse gas emissions show little sign of falling, while wars, inflation and other crises compete for political attention
Sharif highlighted Pakistan's efforts to promote clean energy but warned that "national effort cannot replace a fair and just global response", according to the newspaper.
"When climate disasters strike, vulnerable countries need timely help and finance that does not deepen their debt," he said, adding that Pakistan called for "grant-based finance, including public-private partnerships, alongside a significant increase in resilience and adaptation funds, which amount to survival funds, especially for struggling economies".
Sharif said clean energy sources accounted for nearly 55 per cent of Pakistan's energy needs, adding that the country was advancing electric mobility and had set a target of reducing projected emissions by about 50 per cent by 2035.
Underscoring the need for global solidarity, he said, "Climate change knows no borders and no nation can face it alone. Solidarity must mean real action."
"No nation should be allowed to put the lives and livelihoods of people downstream at risk. Water-sharing agreements must be honoured in letter and spirit," he said.
Sharif further asked world leaders gathered at the summit to "shoulder a shared responsibility to protect life on this earth."
"Let our success be measured not by promises we make here but by the families we protect, the resources we deliver, and the meaningful action we sustain," he said.
Separately, on the sidelines of the summit, Sharif held separate bilateral meetings with Sudan's leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Finland's President Alexander Stubb and Iraq's President Nizar Mohammed Saeed Amidi and discussed issues of mutual interest and regional security.
