John Kerry says 'trillions' needed to stop world's polluters

The former Secretary of State is currently in Europe as part of a bid to get big emitting nations to “up their game” Politico reports.

Kerry said that to avoid the worst consequences of the climate crisis there has to be a change in economic policy in a small group of large countries who are not doing enough to reduce their emissions.

Calling out seven countries, Kerry named China, Russia, India, Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia, South Africa and Saudi Arabia.

READ MORE: Omicron: John Swinney says variant 'galloping through Scotland'

Kerry met with Germany’s newly-appointed Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, European Commission Vice President Ursula von der Leyen and EU Green Deal chief Frans Timmermans on Thursday last week, as well as stopping by in London for talks with COP26 President Alok Sharma and then meeting with French officials in Paris on Friday.

The conversations, Kerry told Politico, focussed on how to combine the different priorities of rich Western donor countries and the needs of poorer countries who are reliant on deforestation and fossil fuels.

Money, from a variety of sources including rich countries, the private sector, multilateral development banks, and philanthropies, is the first step.

Kerry told Politico: “Trillions can clearly, and will need to, be invested.

“We are working out the details of these different options right now. We want to be very specific.

Frans Timmermans (left) and John Kerry (right) at COP26

“None of this should be pie in the sky. It needs to be real and economically viable.”

This agenda would be delivered through a set of global investment programmes recently launched by western countries - the EU’s Global Gateway, the US’s Build Back Better World and the UK’s Clean Green Initiative.

At COP26, a similar model was road tested with a pledge from Western countries to provide South Africa with financia assistance.

The UK, France, Germany, the EU and US agreed that - pending the outcomes of a task force - they will provide $8.5 billion to allow South Africa to retire its coal-fired power plants and retain workers.

READ MORE: Anne-Marie Trevelyan fails to get US steel tariffs removed

In return, South Africa significantly raised its 2030 climate targets ahead of the summit.

Kerry said the model was a “pretty damn good template”, while Timmermans tol a Politico event last week that countries like Indonesia and India were interested in similar deals.

However, as South Africa’s position is unique, Kerry said: “Every place is going to have its own set of challenges”.

He added: “In Indonesia, for instance, you have a combination of palm oil deforestation challenges and you have coal.

Kerry was photographed in Downing Street last week ahead of talks with COP26 President Alok Sharma

“We're prepared to help bring finance and technology to the table and work diligently with them, as we are in these other countries.”

Responding to reports that relations between China and the US are tense amid concern in Beijing that, after the Trump administration backed out of the Paris Agreement, that if a Republican wins the presidency in 2024 the US may back out of their commitments.

However, Kerry was adamant that even if the White House does change hands there are too many cogs in motion.

READ MORE: Douglas Ross can't name any of Boris Johnson's attributes

He said: “I don't believe any president or any prime minister or any finance minister can stand in the way of what the marketplace is now doing.

“I think anybody who's serious knows that these things are happening, these investments are being made, this transition is undertaken.

“And I don't believe a politician can turn it around.”