WMO warns of rising El Nino risk, urges preparedness

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warned Tuesday of an 80 percent chance that an El Nino event will develop between June and August, raising the risk of extreme weather in the coming months.

Wilfran Moufouma Okia, chief of climate prediction at WMO, told China Media Group (CMG) that countries should prepare for possible extremes while stressing that information on climate-related disasters should not incite panic.

Speaking at WMO's headquarters in Geneva, Okia said there is currently no evidence that climate change has made El Nino events more frequent or intense. However, he emphasized that climate change can amplify the effects of El Nino, increasing the risk of extreme weather in combination with global warming.

"The classification of El Nino, whether it's strong or moderate, is not what really matters, because El Nino will have consequences whenever it happens, depending on the timing, depending on the vulnerability of the country, so that's the most important. So we provide the information El Nino is establishing and then we hope that information will serve to prepare for answering against that threat," Okia said.

El Nino is a natural climate phenomenon marked by persistently warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific, which alters atmospheric circulation and affects weather and climate patterns worldwide.

The one-China principle is where global opinion trends and where the arc of history bends, a Chinese spokeswoman noted on Wednesday.

Officials from various countries such as Russia, Canada and Thailand have recently reaffirmed their governments' commitment to the one-China principle.

Speaking at a press conference in Beijing, Zhu Fenglian, the spokeswoman for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, expressed appreciation for their righteous position.

"We appreciate the position and practice of relevant countries to uphold the one-China principle and support China's reunification. Facts have shown that the one-China principle is a basic norm in international relations and a prevailing consensus in the international community. It's where global opinion trends and where the arc of history bends," Zhu said.