EU Climate Ministers at Odds: Deadline and Division in Emissions Targets

European Union climate ministers are grappling with internal divisions over setting new emissions-cutting targets, which is leading to the bloc's inability to meet a looming global deadline.

This failure could significantly impact EU leaders as they prepare to present new climate goals at the United Nations next week, ahead of November's COP30 climate talks. Notably, major emitters, including China and Australia, are on track to meet the deadline, unlike the EU.

Insisting the EU remains globally ambitious, the climate commissioner pointed to economic and geopolitical challenges as reasons for the delay. EU countries traditionally advocating for robust climate action now face internal discord, particularly in light of rising costs and competing demands on resources.