Antarctica Needs Global Action to Tackle Climate Chaos

JAKARTA - UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned that Antarctica's ice is melting and called for global action to tackle "climate chaos."

"It's shocking to stand on the Antarctic ice and hear directly from scientists about how quickly the ice is disappearing," Guterres told reporters at a press conference at UN headquarters on the climate crisis following his recent visit to Chile and Antarctica, as reported by ANTARA from Anadolu , Tuesday, November 28.

He said that currently Antarctica and Greenland are melting three times faster than in the early 1990s.

This September, Antarctic sea ice was 1.5 million square kilometers smaller than the average for the whole year, Guterres said.

"And this year, Antarctic sea ice reached an all-time low. That concerns us all. What happens in Antarctica is not only a problem in Antarctica. We live in an interconnected world," he added.

The UN chief warned that the world is heading for a temperature rise of 3 degrees Celsius by the end of the century.

Turning to the UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) starting this weekend, Guterres said leaders must break the cycle.

"The solution is well known. Leaders must work to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, protect humanity from climate chaos, and end the era of fossil fuels," he said.

"We need a global commitment that  doubles renewable energy, doubles energy efficiency and brings clean energy to all by 2030," he added.

The United Arab Emirates will host this year's COP28, held between November 30 and December 12, with the aim of maintaining the Paris Agreement's warming target of 1.5 degrees Celsius.