Germany increases rainforest protection

Belém (dpa) – At a climate summit in Brazil, Germany’s Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called for a “global effort” to be made in the fight against global warming and pledged new funding to protect tropical rainforests. In his speech, the chancellor said Germany would contribute a “significant amount” to a new multibillion dollar fund intended to slow deforestation in countries such as Brazil and the Democratic Republic of Congo.  

Brazil wants to see rich countries initially contribute 25 billion US dollars on a voluntary basis. This could benefit a good 70 countries with tropical forests.  

Attended by dozens of heads of state and government, the summit kicks off the UN Climate Change Conference, which officially begins on Monday. It will be taking place ten years after the historic Paris Agreement to limit global warming, which was signed by nearly 200 countries.  

Merz committed himself to the German and European climate targets: “Germany can be relied on,” he said, though he also stressed the need to take global responsibility. He explained that Germany had made around six billion euros in public climate funding available in 2024 - but said that others also had to pull their weight to a greater extent. “All countries with the economic means and high emissions - and this includes us - have a duty to do so,” he said.