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Boris Johnson speaks at the UN General Assembly
Photo: EDUARDO MUNOZ / REUTERS
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson continued his tradition of absurdly comical appearances at the UN General Assembly with a speech on the fight against climate change.
With a view to the threatened failure of the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow in November, Johnson urged greater efforts in his address at the general debate of the United Nations in New York on Wednesday evening.
"We have a great power to change things, or to change things for the better, and a great power to save ourselves," he said.
›It's not easy to be green‹
Johnson emphasized that climate action would not only help the planet but also benefit economies: “When Kermit the frog sang 'It's not easy to be green' - do you remember? - I want you to know he was wrong. He was wrong. It's not just easy, it's lucrative and it's right to be green! ”Said Johnson about the famous frog figure from the“ Muppet Show ”. He added: "Quite apart from the fact that I think he was unnecessarily rude to Miss Piggy."
In addition to planting trees, Johnson praised wind energy in particular - in his very own way: “We created large forests from beautiful wind turbines in the flooded prairies of Doggerland between Great Britain and Holland in the North Sea.
In fact, we produce so much offshore wind that I am considering changing my name to "Boreas" Johnson in honor of the god of the north wind. "
In his speech, the British Prime Minister, known for his silly appearances, thanked China’s President Xi Jinping for his announcement that he would no longer export coal-fired power plants.
He also praised US President Joe Biden for his promise of billions of additional dollars in climate aid.
Johnson also raved about modern technology with which one can "absorb CO₂ and put it in brownies".
The prime minister also made it clear that the global course in the fight against global warming with a forecast temperature increase of 2.7 degrees by 2100 is fatal.
"I hope Cop 26 turns out to be like a sixteenth birthday to humanity where there isn't a lot of misery, but a party where we choose to grow up," Johnson said.
That is why "the candles of a burning world" should be blown out at the climate conference.
muk / dpa