Climate change a security risk
10/03/2008 20:16  - (SA)  

Scientists: Sea levels to fall Climate change 'worst for poor'

London - Climate change will spark an era of conflict over scarce resources, European heads of government have been warned in a report, according to The Guardian on Monday.

The report, written by EU foreign police chief Javier Solana and European commissioner for external relations Benita Ferrero-Waldner, said that "significant potential conflicts" were likely in years to come because of "intensified competition over access to, and control over, energy resources."

According to the newspaper, which obtained a copy of the seven-page report, it warned of increased tensions between rich and poor countries, as the consequences of climate change were likely to be most pronounced in developing countries.

The report also describes accelerated melting of polar ice caps, especially the Arctic, as having "potential consequences for international stability and European security interests.

"The rapid melting of the polar ice caps, in particular the Arctic, is opening up new waterways and international trade routes... The increased accessibility of the enormous hydrocarbon resources in the Arctic region is changing the geostrategic dynamics of the region."

The report calls for the EU to develop a policy on the Arctic "based on the evolving geostrategy of the ... region, taking into account access to resources and the opening of new trade routes."

- AFP

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