UN chief warns climate chaos and food crises are threatening global peace

The United Nations chief has called climate chaos an increasing threat to peace.

Secretary-general Antonio Guterres told the UN Security Council that climate disasters imperil food production and “empty bellies fuel unrest”.

He urged council members to address the impact of food shortages and rising temperatures on international security.

“Climate and conflict are two leading drivers of (our) global food crisis,” he said. “Where wars rage, hunger reigns – whether due to displacement of people, destruction of agriculture, damage to infrastructure, or deliberate policies of denial.

“Meanwhile, climate chaos is imperilling food production the world over.”

Mr Guterres, inset, said the world is teeming with examples of “the devastating relationship between hunger and conflict”. In Gaza, he said, no one has enough to eat and the tiny strip accounts for 80 per cent of the 700,000 hungriest people in the world. After more than a decade of war in Syria, he said, 13 million Syrians go to bed hungry every night.

And in Myanmar, prospects of ending hunger have gone into reverse because of conflict and instability, he said.

Simon Stiell, the United Nations climate chief, told the council climate change is contributing to food insecurity and to conflict. He said one in ten people already suffers from chronic hunger and if climate change accelerates, “it will become worse”.

“Rapid, sustained action to cut greenhouse gas emissions and to increase resilience is needed now to help stop both from spiralling out of control,” Mr Stiell said.

But Russia’s UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia, whose country holds veto power in the Security Council, reiterated Moscow's long-standing position that there is no “direct link” between social and economic issues like climate and food supplies and the council's mandate to ensure international peace and security.

He blamed former Western colonial powers and the United States as “the real root causes” of the problems facing developing countries.

“Neo-colonialist practices are the real reason for socio-economic difficulties which the developing world is encountering,” the Russian ambassador said.