UN Urges Accelerated Climate Action Ahead of COP31
The United Nations (UN) has urged countries to accelerate the implementation of climate commitments ahead of the COP31 Climate Change Conference in Turkey in November 2026. The call was made following the UN climate meeting in Bonn, Germany, which was deemed to have made some progress despite lingering differences of opinion between nations.
Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), said the Bonn meeting demonstrated the seriousness of countries in discussing key climate change issues, including just transition, adaptation, and climate finance.
"We still have significant differences and a great deal of work ahead. But we are seeing seriousness in addressing important issues and a determination to find solutions," Stiell said at the closing of the 64th session of the UNFCCC Subsidiary Bodies (SB64) in Bonn on Thursday (18/6/2026).
According to Stiell, one of the advances achieved was the discussion on Just Transition. Countries began discussing concrete steps to translate the concept into policies that can protect workers and communities affected by the transition to a low-carbon economy.
The Bonn meeting also addressed the Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE) agenda, which encompasses education, public participation, and capacity building for communities in climate action. In addition, a number of action targets related to electrification, urban resilience, energy efficiency, and waste management were also a focus of discussions.
Nevertheless, Stiell acknowledged that several key issues had not progressed adequately. Global geopolitical tensions were said to have influenced the dynamics of negotiations during the meeting.
He stressed that countries must adhere to the commitments agreed upon in the Paris Agreement and the outcomes of the first Global Stocktake, including the target of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
"We cannot reopen previous decisions, renegotiate existing targets, or retreat from commitments already made," he stated.
The UNFCCC also highlighted the importance of accelerating the implementation of various climate finance commitments, including the target of mobilising USD 1.3 trillion, the annual climate finance commitment of USD 300 billion, loss and damage funding, and increased adaptation finance for developing countries.
According to Stiell, one of the remaining challenges is the tendency of some countries to wait for others to act before enhancing their own climate actions. This condition risks slowing down the negotiation process at a time when the world requires faster implementation.
He encouraged countries to begin involving ministers and high-level decision-makers in the coming months to resolve various crucial issues before COP31 convenes.
Stiell asserted that tackling the climate crisis requires stronger global cooperation. According to him, success in climate action cannot be achieved through competition between nations, but rather through collaboration that can protect people from the increasingly severe impacts of climate change.
"To protect eight billion people from the climate crisis, what we need is cooperation, not competition," Stiell said.