G7 nations vow to stop financing fossil fuel abroad by end of 2022
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Japan joins other G7 members in signing a pledge to end overseas fossil fuel financing.
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The pledge allows for exceptions as long as they are consistent with the 2015 Paris pact (AFP)
G7 energy and climate ministers said in a joint statement on Friday after talks in Berlin that they commit to end direct public support for the global unabated fossil fuel energy sector by the end of 2022.
The term "unabated" signals projects that do not employ techniques to offset pollution brought on by CO2 emissions.
Japan has for the first time joined its fellow G7 members in the pledge. Until today, Britain, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, and the US had signed the pledge, and Japan had resisted.
Around 20 countries had committed to end subsidies for the international fossil fuel sector at last year's COP26 climate summit in Glasgow.
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"It is good that Japan, the world's largest financier of fossil fuels, has now joined the other G7 countries in making a shared commitment to end overseas fossil fuel financing," said Alden Meyer, senior associate at climate policy think tank E3G, according to AFP.
Some limited exceptions are still allowed for fossil fuel financing, as long as the financing is consistent with the 2015 Paris pact to limit global temperature increases.
Ministers at the G7 talks also committed to doing the utmost to end the use of fossil fuels in their electricity sectors by 2035, despite the consequences of the war in Ukraine, saying "We further commit to a goal of achieving predominantly decarbonized electricity sectors by 2035."
