Climate Justice! States’ obligations for climate change

By S R Ranjan: Call to action for climate justice continues to keep it momentum even after the developing nations’ much criticised COP29 deal to provide $300 billion a year.

In a landmark public hearing before International Court of Justice (ICJ), no fewer than 96 countries and 11 regional organizations took part in December 2024 and all presented their positions on the United Nations General Assembly’s  request for an advisory opinion to clarify the “obligations of States with regard to climate change”  under international law.

The ICJ hearings broadly concern the obligations of States around the world with respect to climate change and the legal consequences of these obligations. They are significant because they represent the international community’s efforts to come up with a legal framework for addressing climate change. The ICJ court is being asked to provide clarity on international law with respect to climate change. The legal advice it provides may in turn influence any multilateral processes involving climate action.

All the different countries put forward their respective positions. Brazil, which will host COP30 in 2025 in Belem, recalled the catastrophic effects of climate change within its borders. It highlighted the ambition of new voluntary national contribution (CNV). It aims to reduce emissions by 59% to 67% by 2035, compared with 2005 levels. Brazil insisted on “historical responsibilities” for greenhouse gas emissions and the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capacities” of states.

One of the world’s largest emitters of greenhouse gases, China expressed the hope that the ICJ Court “will focus on the identification and clarification of the current law and refrain from the development and application of future law”. The United States has acknowledged its responsibility as the second largest emitter of greenhouse gases and encourages the ICJ Court to ensure that its opinion preserves and promotes the centrality of the UN treaty framework, but does not consider it a legal binding.

The ICJ will deliver its non-binding advisory opinion in several months, but it is expected to guide future international climate law.

- S R Ranjan, A Journalist

(Singh Rakesh Ranjan)

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(Representational images, Sources)