COP31: Contrast between defense and environment spending in the speeches of the day

O the contrast between the millions spent in defense and the lack of funding to combat global warming, and the environmental impact of wars was highlighted today at the climate conference in Turkey.

The denunciation of this contrast was made on the third day of the 31st United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP31), which takes place in the city of Antália, by several leaders and non-governmental organizations.

“ We're told there's no money, but military spending is increasing. The biggest threat to our security remains underfunded,” said Hilda Heine, President of the Marshall Islands, one of the countries most threatened by rising sea level.

“ I call on you to find funds for life, not for death”, he added.

At the G7 and G20 summits, “we are now talking more about arms and tariffs than about the survival of future generations,” Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva lamented.

And Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also addressed the environmental impact of wars, saying that “nature, like humanity, pays a high price for armed conflicts. Gaza is the most flagrant example (...) where not only genocide but also an ecocide are seen”, he said.

The Government of Iran also denounced today at the conference that the war begun in February by the United States and Israel was one of the main causes of pollution this year, by causing fires of oil deposits.

Fires in fuel storage facilities near Tehran released “between 500,000 and a million tons of carbon dioxide,” he said.

“The environment is the silent victim of wars. The destruction remains even after the end of the conflict,” said Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during the round of world leaders' speeches at COP31 that began today.

Global military spending reached almost $3 billion in 2025, according to a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

For Tasneem Essop, director of the Climate Action Network, which brings together several environmental NGOs, this increase in military expenditure is noticeably absent from discussions at COP31.

“ Rich countries come here claiming they have no money for climate action. However, they have considerable funds to finance wars,” he said, quoted by AFP.

According to a 2022 study by the organization Scientists for Global Responsibility and the Observatory for Conflicts and Environment, the armed forces are also responsible for 5.5% of greenhouse gas emissions.

“ How can we ignore these significant emissions when we are desperately trying to reduce them?” Tasneem Essop questioned.

Turkey, a NATO member, plans to increase its military budget by 229% in 2027. The 32 NATO countries committed last year to allocating at least 5% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to security expenditure by 2035, including 3.5% to military expenditure.

“Every cent attributed to the defense must also be allocated to the preservation of life on this planet,” Turkey’s Environment Minister and COP31 president Murat Kurum said in September.

“ The Turkish presidency of the COP could have shown more leadership in this matter,” Tasneem Essop said.