I would like to thank Slovenia, Guyana, the Republic of Korea and Sierra Leone for convening this meeting on a pressing topic as well as today’s briefers for their insightful contributions. Germany aligns itself with the statement delivered by Nauru on behalf of the Group of Friends on climate and security.

Germany agrees with the Secretary General’s assessment in the New Agenda for Peace: in order to successfully deal with common challenges, we need to adapt and enhance the existing UN toolbox.

Let me share some concrete tools and initiatives that Germany has been supporting:

- The Peacebuilding Fund is the UN’s leading instrument to invest in prevention and peacebuilding in countries that face conflict, to address root causes of violence and instability. Its projects include environmental peacebuilding approaches. Last year’s Thematic Review provides excellent guidance for investments in climate-security interventions. We should all support this approach. Germany is proud to be the biggest donor to the PBF.

- We also support the Climate Security Mechanism as we believe in its crucial role to mainstream climate, peace and security within the UN system and to develop holistic approaches to address the multiple challenges of human security and climate change. One of the CSM’s flagship instruments are the climate, peace and security advisors. They work with missions in South Sudan, Iraq, the Horn of Africa – providing climate security trainings, establishing strategies and exploring innovative solutions. They are also crucial to provide reporting to the Security Council.

Good data sets and analysis are important for early warning in the climate-security context. Therefore, Germany contributes to the Complex Risk Analytics Fund that conducts climate-fragility data, for example for UNDPs INFORM Warning project.

- We need to ramp up early warning in the context of anticipatory humanitarian action, triggering action before a climate-related disaster strikes, making it more efficient. This leads to less damage and tension, and also saves costs. That is why the German government spends at least 5% of its humanitarian budget on anticipatory action. To share an encouraging example: Recently, the World Food Program was able to support around 400.000 people in seven districts of Somalia with pre-flood radio messages broadcast twice a day in all locations and warning tones on mobile phones as well as boats for evacuation.

- Lastly, at COP28, Germany launched the new “Women and Climate Security Funding Initiative” together with our partner – the Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund. It provides funding for grassroots and local women’s organizations at the forefront of preventing and responding to climate-related conflicts, for example in Nigeria, Colombia and the Pacific Islands.

To conclude: While environmental peace-building is essential to address current needs, we urgently require ambitious climate action to contain the crisis. At COP28 a historical decision was taken: phasing away from fossil fuels. By reducing emissions, the world community also invests in security.

Thank you.