The White House, intelligence agencies, and the Pentagon released a series of reports on Thursday warning that climate change poses a long-term threat to global security, The Washington Post reports.
The Director of National Intelligence issued a first-of-its-kind National Intelligence Estimate on climate warning that “current policies and pledges are insufficient” to reduce emissions and greenhouse gases to meet the goals of the Paris accord.
“We assess that climate change will increasingly exacerbate risks to U.S. national security interests as the physical impacts increase and geopolitical tensions mount about how to respond to the challenge,” the report says.
“Countries are arguing about who should act sooner and competing to control the growing clean energy transition,” the assessment warned.
Pentagon report:
The Pentagon also released a Defense Climate Risk Assessment, warning that China and other countries could take advantage of rising sea levels and other climate-related changes.
“Climate change touches most of what this department does, and this threat will continue to have worsening implications for U.S. national security,” said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
Intelligence agencies warned back in 2014 that climate change could pose risks to water supply and other resources, potentially triggering new wars.
White House report:
The White House also released a report on migration, looking at how climate change is displacing people around the world and warning that drought and other extreme weather could pose an opening for China and Russia to take advantage.
“Absent a robust strategy from the United States and Europe to address climate-related migration, the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Russia, and other states could seek to gain influence by providing direct support to impacted countries grappling with political unrest related to migration,” the report says.
