German Chancellor Angela Merkel and key Cabinet ministers met their Dutch counterparts Thursday to discuss ways of tackling climate change together.
The meeting at Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte's official residence comes as Germany is set to miss its emissions goals for 2020 by a wide margin, even as Merkel's government acknowledges that it has to further ramp up its ambition by next year as part of its commitment under the 2015 Paris climate accord.
The Dutch ministers will explain how they reached broad consensus in June this year for a wide-ranging raft of measures, from a carbon tax to more bicycle parking at railway stations, to slash the country's emission of carbon by half by 2030.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, right, poses with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, at the entrance to his official residence in The Hague, Netherlands, Thursday Aug. 22, 2019. Merkel and key Cabinet ministers are meeting their Dutch counterparts Thursday to discuss ways of tackling climate change together, as Germany is set to miss its emissions goals for 2020 by a wide margin.(AP PhotoMike Corder)
In a typically Dutch approach, that could appeal to the German government, sectors of industry and society that will have to implement changes sat down together for months to thrash out details of the climate package.
Environmental groups welcomed parts of the Dutch deal, but said it was insufficient in the battle to halt the warming of the Earth's atmosphere.
The Dutch government aims to make electricity production in the Netherlands 100 percent carbon neutral in 2050 and generate 70 percent of energy from wind and solar by 2030. Germany, meanwhile, is phasing out its use of nuclear power in its own energy transition.
Earlier this year, Merkel appointed a dedicated 'climate Cabinet' to address the challenges caused by global warming and find ways in which Germany can meet its targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
Speaking in Iceland after a meeting with Nordic leaders this week, Merkel said climate change "can be seen in Germany, too, by now." The country has experienced two consecutive years of drought and extreme heat, causing billions in damage to agriculture.
Her government plans to agree a package of measures by Sept. 20, days before a U.N. climate summit in New York, but there has been strong disagreement among coalition parties on issues such as carbon pricing.
Merkel, who has declared she won't run for another term in office, has repeatedly called climate change one of the most pressing issues for humanity.
"The price of doing nothing is certainly higher than the price of action," Merkel told reporters during her visit to Iceland.
Frank Jordans in Berlin contributed.
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — A top European Union military officer said that a frigate that’s part of an EU mission in the Red Sea to protect merchant shipping destroyed a drone launched from an area in Yemen controlled by Houthi rebels on Thursday morning.
Austrian Gen. Robert Brieger, who is chair of the EU’s military committee, said that it would be crucial for the bloc to “conserve resources” over the long haul because the threat posed by Houthi attacks “will not disappear” due to its connection to the Israel-Hamas war.
“The task given to the military is simply to protect merchant ships and to show the public that the European Union is not willing to accept a terrorist organization will interrupt the freedom of movement at sea,” Brieger said.
Brieger said that he’s asking EU members to provide the necessary resources to the EU mission dubbed Aspides — Greek for “shields.”
He said that it’s the first time that the EU has launched a naval operation in a hostile environment that's twice the size of the 27-nation bloc, calling it a “litmus test” that the bloc will pass successfully.
The commander of an EU naval mission in the Red Sea, Greek Rear Adm. Vasilios Gryparis, wants to significantly increase its size to better defend against possible attacks by Houthi rebels based in Yemen. Nineteen of the 27 EU nations are involved in the mission, but only four frigates are patrolling an area twice the size of the bloc.
The EU mission was established in February to defend civilian vessels and doesn't take part in any military strikes. The southern part of the Red Sea is deemed a high-risk zone.
Iran-backed Houthi rebels, which control much of Yemen’s north and west, launched a campaign of drone and missile attacks on shipping in the Red Sea in November. They have also fired missiles toward Israel, although those have largely fallen short or been intercepted.
The attacks have hit maritime trade to Egypt and Europe, with only around half the usual number of ships moving through the area. It’s added up to two weeks of transit time for vessels that want to avoid the Suez Canal, hiking transport costs and shipping insurance.
The rebels have described their campaign as an effort to pressure Israel to end the wear. The ships targeted by the Houthis, however, largely have had little or no connection to Israel, the U.S. or other nations involved in the war.
Their campaign has continued despite more than two months of U.S.-led retaliatory airstrikes.
General Robert Brieger, chairman of the EU's Military Committee talks to the media during a press conference after a meeting with the Cyprus national guard chief Georgios Tsitsikostas at the Defense Ministry in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, on Thursday, April 25, 2024. The European Union's top military official says a frigate that's part of an EU military mission in the Red Sea to protect merchant shipping has destroyed a drone launched from an area in Yemen controlled by Houthi rebels. Brieger said the downing of the drone took place Thursday morning. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
General Robert Brieger, chairman of the EU's Military Committee talks to the media during a press conference after a meeting with the Cyprus national guard chief Georgios Tsitsikostas at the Defense Ministry in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, on Thursday, April 25, 2024. The European Union's top military official says a frigate that's part of an EU military mission in the Red Sea to protect merchant shipping has destroyed a drone launched from an area in Yemen controlled by Houthi rebels. Brieger said the downing of the drone took place Thursday morning. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
General Robert Brieger, chairman of the EU's Military Committee talks to the media during a press conference after a meeting with the Cyprus national guard chief Georgios Tsitsikostas at the Defense Ministry in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, on Thursday, April 25, 2024. The European Union's top military official says a frigate that's part of an EU military mission in the Red Sea to protect merchant shipping has destroyed a drone launched from an area in Yemen controlled by Houthi rebels. Brieger said the downing of the drone took place Thursday morning. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
General Robert Brieger, chairman of the EU's Military Committee talks to the media during a press conference after a meeting with the Cyprus national guard chief Georgios Tsitsikostas at the Defense Ministry in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, on Thursday, April 25, 2024. The European Union's top military official says a frigate that's part of an EU military mission in the Red Sea to protect merchant shipping has destroyed a drone launched from an area in Yemen controlled by Houthi rebels. Brieger said the downing of the drone took place Thursday morning. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
