NATO: We need green armed forces to tackle security threat of climate change

NATO forces need to be strong and green at the same time, the alliance’s top official said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a side event of COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg underlined that security and climate are two sides of the same coin.

“We cannot choose either green or strong armed forces. We need strong and green at the same time,” said Stoltenberg at the event, titled Climate, Peace and Stability: Weathering Risk Through COP and Beyond, noting that COP26 is the first climate summit where NATO is present.

Highlighting that the most effective planes, ships, and military vehicles of the future would run on “something different than fossil fuels,” he said they would not emit greenhouse gasses.

Touching on the issue of “military emissions,” Stoltenberg said one of NATO’s priorities would be to developing a methodology to count emissions from military sources.

He also noted that NATO’s military forces must adapt to the effects of climate change on the ground to be able to operate in extreme weather conditions.

The COP26 meeting will continue through Nov. 12 with numerous panels, meetings, and side events, all seeking remedies to reduce the levels of global warming by keeping it to 1.5 C.