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Climate & Environment

‘Risk of bad outcome’ at COP 27, Eamon Ryan warns

The Minister for Environment also said fossil fuel, aviation and shipping companies should have to contribute money to new loss and damage funds.

Climate & Environment

COP 27: ‘Africa is the least responsible for global warming but bears the worst impacts’

COP 27, taking place this year in Sharm El Sheikh, will focus on aid for developing countries to mitigate the harms caused by high-emitting rich nations, but it also needs to hammer home the message that climate pledges mean nothing if action is not taken

Climate & Environment

Governments need to be more ambitious to address global warming issues, says expert

IPCC member Peter Thorne points to ‘major gap’ between between emissions reductions needed and governments’ pledges

Business Post's View

Editorial: The world must unite to condemn China’s human rights abuses

A UN report has exposed the abuse of Uyghur Muslim people in Chinese detention centres in terrible detail – and the international community, from world leaders to businesses, must do all in its power to force China’s hand

UN criticises Ireland over insufficient anti-corruption measures, PSC data retention

The human rights body late last month issued concluding observations on its fifth periodic review of Ireland’s compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

Government warns windfall tax on energy sector could rebound on consumers

Many European states are imposing such a tax after UN secretary-general censured fossil fuel giants for reaping ‘immoral’ profits during the energy crisis

Threat of global food crisis recedes as grain ships leave Ukrainian ports

The vessels are the first to depart the ports on the Black Sea in months, following Russia’s deal with Ukraine last month to allow safe passage to grain shipments

Russia agrees initial deal with the UN to allow Ukraine grain exports resume

Representatives from Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, the US, the EU and the United Nations have agreed a basic deal to allow grain shipments resume from Black Sea ports

Against the grain: How Russia’s war in Ukraine is threatening the world’s food supply

Already a humanitarian disaster on the ground, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is now looking increasingly likely to trigger a global food shortage over the coming months, with supply chains broken and potential shipping routes for grain cut off. With no end to the conflict in sight, the implications for numerous countries are potentially devastating

A United force: Behind the scenes with Ireland at the UN

Since landing a seat on the United Nations Security Council in June 2020, Ireland has played a low-profile but crucial role in shaping global detente, with permanent representative Geraldine Byrne Nason finding herself back in the place where her diplomatic career began in the 1980s. In an age of conflict and uncertainty, she prides Ireland on having what she calls ‘an independent voice’ in the crucible of world affairs

Russia dooms Ireland’s bid to have climate change integrated into the work of the United Nations Security Council

Some 113 of the 193 countries with UN membership supported the resolution, while 12 of the 15 members of the council supported it, with India voting no, and China abstaining

Rohingya refugees seek government’s help in Facebook fight

Members of the Myanmar minority want recompense from the social media giant for its role in the spread of hate against them

Biden dogged by foreign policy disasters as pivotal UN speech looms

Ahead of his prestigious address to the United Nations General Assembly, the US president has a credibility problem following a succession of disasters in Afghanistan

The UNGA games: tension mounts behind scenes of NY summit

An insistence on pressing ahead with potential super-spreader events, and the refusal of world leaders such as Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro to get vaccinated, have turned this year’s UN General Assembly into a gigantic logistical headache

Editorial: We cannot abandon Afghanistan to medieval ignorance and horror

The world must hold the Taliban to account, and a well-funded UN programme should help to assess what the country needs now

Dept of Foreign Affairs to publish correspondence on Zappone appointment

The former children’s minister turned down the appointment at the start of this month, in the wake of considerable public backlash

Comment: Covid-19 crisis is the greatest test of global solidarity in generations

As the world tries to recover from the pandemic while facing the ongoing threat of climate change, multilateral cooperation is more important than ever

Winners and losers as pandemic transforms corporate landscape

It was a good year for Elon Musk, with Tesla now more valuable than almost all its auto industry rivals combined

Colin Murphy: Second place is a great achievement, so why don’t we celebrate it more?

The media tend to ignore good news in favour of bad, and to focus on human drama, neglecting the slower, more subtle stories that really matter

Elaine Byrne: Ireland must work harder in the absence of ‘soft power’ at the UN

The Security Council’s move online reduces the opportunity for informal diplomacy, but we must not lower our ambitions