SHARM EL SHEIKH – Today, Senator Edward J Markey (D-Mass) announced his support for a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Parliamentarians’ Call for a Fossil Fuel Free Future at the UN climate talks during an event hosted by Parliamentarians for a Fossil Fuel Free Future and the Bangladesh Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

In his speech, Senator Markey said: “The United States cannot preach temperance from a bar stool. We cannot tell other countries what to do if we’re not doing it ourselves because we all have to be all together on this issue. And that’s why today, I am publicly supporting the call for a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty and the parliamentarian’s call to work together on an international future for a livable future for everyone”.

The International Energy Agency has said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will accelerate a peak in the world’s consumption of fossil fuels, with gas demand now expected to join oil and coal in topping out near the end of this decade. The agency also has asserted that to stay below 1.5C, there must be no new oil and gas fields or coal mines, and global renewable energy investment tripled by 2030 plus immediate and rapid transition away from fossil fuel production.

The Senator added: “Those who have done the least to cause climate change are the most vulnerable to its threats. The science is clear. The United States is responsible for more emissions than any other country in the history of the world. So much of the CO2 is red, white and blue. The economics are clear”.

Tom BK Goldtooth, Fossil Fuel Treaty Champion and Executive Director of the Indigenous Environmental Network, said: "The United States needs more political leaders like Senator Ed Markey from Massachusetts that are finally listening to the Traditional Knowledge Keepers of Indigenous Peoples who are calling for nation-states of the world to endorse the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty. Senator Markey’s statement issuing a call to support the Treaty is the right step in meeting the Paris Agreement’s goal of 1.5 degree Celsius. Preventing the proliferation of coal, oil, and gas by ending all new exploration and production is supported by small island states like Vanuatu and Tuvalu. Indigenous Peoples from the U.S. and worldwide commend his statement, as Indigenous Peoples globally are on the frontlines of fighting the negative impacts of fossil fuel development and climate change."

The speech comes on the backdrop of fossil fuels having not been directly addressed significantly in the UN climate talks. The primary cause of loss and damage is fossil fuels, with coal, oil and gas fueling 86% of CO2 emissions in the past decade. However, the world is on track to produce more than double the fossil fuels than is compatible with a 1.5°C target. The fossil fuel industry is also earning 11-figure profits from this addiction while households struggle to afford basic needs and over 1 billion people live with almost no modern energy. Africa alone is home to 600 million people without access to electricity.