‘A Faith Perspective on Climate Justice’

Interfaith Liaison Committee Press Conference

Deborah Burton’s presentation – Military Spending & Climate Finance

As we sit here in Bonn, with negotiators deep in discussion on the myriad interconnected routes by which the human family can rise to the challenge of NOT surpassing 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming – and critically financing it –  the richest nations are committing themselves to finding big new sources of money for rearmament.

There is ever more media coverage concerning threats about the potential for – indeed actual preparatory planning for – WW3.

Meantime, the Russian permafrost is melting. The oceans are heating. The high mountains are melting. Water tables are drying up. Agriculture is on the frontline of the climate emergency.

As Ana Toni, the CEO of COP30  herself has said Climate change IS war – on people.

A growing number of scientists and political leaders – including President Lula – are with those of us in civil society who are saying WE CANNOT afford to be dragged into this arms race narrative.

It is hugely profitable for the big arms companies.  It is fatal for the most vulnerable countries in need of reparatory climate finance – as well as for greenhouse gas emissions.

Military spending positively correlates to emissions – the more you spend on heavily reliant fossil fuel hardware, the more you emit.

Global military spending for 2024 – $2.7 trillion.  Approx 85% of that accrues to 20 top spending nations.

At Baku last year, the civil society climate finance call was for a MINIMUM $5trillion p/a costed thoroughly by Oil Change Intl and which included diverting 20% of global annual military spending as part of that 5tr mix.

I want to share with you some of a number of key findings from a report we are publishing this week together with TNI and Stop Wappendhandel in the Netherlands entitled Nato’s 3.5% GDP Spending Goal: Unsustainable on every count

NATO is an alliance of ***32*** nations – accounts for more than half of that global annual military spending of $2.7tr.

In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Donald Trump’s demand that EU NATO members hike their spending, NATO now wants its members to go from spending a min of 2% of GDP to 3.5 and then 5% of GDP on military.

This 3.5% is not a pipe dream. The United States already does year on year. UK, Germany, France and many other members of NATO are signing up.

What does this mean for climate finance?

  • NATO military expenditure is currently $1.5 trillion p/a
  • NATO’s new 3.5% of GDP spending goal if implemented over the next 6 year period to 2030 would lead to a $2.6 tr total increase compared to if every NATO member only hit the 2% of GDP spending target.
  • This figure could provide nearly three years worth of climate finance needs of developing countries at $1 trillion a year
  • or pay outright for the world’s global electricity grid to be made net zero compatible by 2030.

Remember it was just a few years ago that 2% was a pipe dream for most NATO members! 10 years ago, only three countries (USA, UK, Greece) achieved the 2% target

THEN there is the question WHAT ABOUT EVERYONE ELSE whether Non NATO allies around the world or let’s say China.  If China adopted the same goal, it would immediately double China’s military expenditure to $646bn, with the consequent impacts on military emissions.

It was hard enough to comprehend a full blown war in Europe when Russia invaded Ukraine. It is beyond comprehension that we are watching the genocide of the Palestinian people on our tv screens.   Israel dropped more bombs on Gaza in less than a year than were dropped on Dresden, Hamburg and London combined during WW2.

Martin Luther King spoke of the ‘triple evils’ being at the root of injustice. 

He said – in 1967 – We must rapidly begin the shift from a ‘thing-oriented’ society to a ‘person-oriented’ society. When machines and computers, profit motives and property rights are considered more important than people, the giant triplets of racism, materialism, and militarism are incapable of being conquered. Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men. ‘

He is right.

We have a closing window of time to address the climate crisis, but the world’s political leaders are more focused on arming themselves to the teeth than prioritising climate action. We urgently need to de-escalate tensions and find peaceful solutions to conflicts if we are to defend our planet.