Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine for European Integration Svitlana Grynchuk said that russia's war against Ukraine is accelerating climate change and causing increased greenhouse gas emissions.
According to preliminary estimates, military equipment caused 4 million tons of carbon emissions in 150 days, which is 10 times more than similar indicators for the whole of 2021, the Ministry of Environment's press service reports.
"Now the Ministry of Environment faces ambitious goals regarding the fastest possible implementation of the requirements stipulated in the Agreement on the Association of Ukraine with the EU. After all, we understand that environmental and climate protection issues will be one of the key issues in the negotiation process for Ukraine's full membership in the EU. To a certain extent, we it is possible. But at the same time, it is worth a titanic effort," Grynchuk emphasized during the "Climate governance: from post-war recovery to EU membership" discussion.
She added that because of the war, Ukrainian society pays less attention to the issue of climate change.
However, as the head of the Ministry of Environment, Ruslan Strilets, noted, the strategic goal of post-war recovery is a clean and safe environment, further movement along the European "green course" and reconstruction of the economy according to the principles of sustainable development.
Development of the Ministry of Environment in the field of climate policy:
- finalization of the Climate Law of Ukraine, which should cover all directions in the sphere of climate policy formation and implementation;
- completion of work on the plan of measures for the implementation of the updated Nationally Determined Contribution of Ukraine to the Paris Agreement and development of a financial concept for its implementation together with the EBRD.
"Currently, the plan of measures to implement NVV2 is being reviewed by the CEO. In the near future, all approval procedures will be completed and the plan will be submitted to the Government for consideration. I hope that Ukraine will receive an approved plan for the implementation of its climate goals before the 27th COP," Grynchuk said.
Earlier, EcoPolitic wrote, that the former head of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, said that Russia's war against Ukraine and the deepening of the energy crisis complicate efforts to combat climate change.
As EcoPolitic previously reported, Serhii Vlasenko, adviser to the Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, emphasized that the armed aggression of the russian federation is exacerbating the climate crisis in the world.
