Krzysztof Szczerski made the statement at a UN Security Council meeting in New York on Wednesday focusing on climate and security in Africa, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
The Polish envoy said, as cited by PAP: “Climate change endangers efforts to build and maintain peace, exacerbates instability and acts as a threat multiplier."
He added: “As climate change gets worse, it will have far-reaching consequences for global stability in the coming decades.”
Szczerski told the UN Security Council that climate change had a particularly damaging effect on Africa, deepening poverty and threatening food security.
Impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
The Polish UN ambassador warned that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had made an already critical food situation in Africa even worse.
He told the UN Security Council: “The Russian war against Ukraine is an example of how a regional conflict can have global repercussions.”
“This war has contributed to a sharp increase in fuel, fertilisers and food prices, as well as disruption of supply chains resulting in a worsening situation in Africa,” Szczerski stated.
‘Poland supports many African countries’
He said that "enhancing climate resilience in Africa is an urgent and persistent need.”
He added that Poland was supporting many African countries through its "Polish Aid development cooperation programmes."
Szczerski also said that Poland was helping African countries “adapt to climate change, protect natural resources and bolster food security," the PAP news agency reported.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP, press.un.org
