Germany made ‘painful choices’ in clearing village to make way for coal mine, climate envoy says
Germany had to make “painful choices” when it evicted people from a village to make way for the expansion of a coal mine, its climate envoy has told Sky News.
Footage of German riot police in Lutzerath clashing with protesters against the nearby Garzweiler coal mine made headlines worldwide.
It was a decision some found incongruous with Germany’s ambition to be a global climate leader.
Jennifer Morgan, state secretary and special envoy for international climate action, said: “These are the very challenging societal debates that one has to have if you’re serious about moving forward on the climate crisis.
“Are there tough choices and painful choices that come along the way? Absolutely.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
14 January: Protests to save German village
Ms Morgan pointed to the other ways Germany had scrambled to ensure the lights stayed on as Russian President Vladimir Putin squeezed Europe’s gas supplies.
This included phasing out all Russian fossil fuels imports “in a very short period of time,” shifting to 80% renewables by 2030 and helping cut energy use by 60% in industry and 14% by households, she said.
Ms Morgan added: “I would hope that one sees that as the direction that Germany is moving in, that there are very difficult political compromises that get made,” she said, referencing the fact the coal-intensive North Rhine-Westphalia region had also brought forward its coal end date.
But she admitted Germany was “vulnerable” to the recent energy security crisis and that it had “learned the hard way that one shouldn’t be so dependent on fossil fuels or on one country”.
The campaigner-turned-diplomat, who was once head of Greenpeace International, also hinted at some sympathy with the Lutzerath activists.
She called it “incredibly important in a climate crisis” that young people can engage “in an act of political debate about their future”.
Police officers spray activists during a protest against the expansion of a mine
‘Rebalance fossil fuel interests’
In an interview in the German ambassador’s residence in London, Ms Morgan said “there needs to be a rebalancing” of fossil fuel influence at the annual United Nations COP climate summits.
Last week, 450 green groups wrote to the UN to request a crackdown, after 630 lobbyists registered to attend COP27 in Egypt last year.
Their concerns were amplified after United Arab Emirates, one of the world’s largest oil producers and host of COP28 this December, appointed an oil executive and government to run the talks.
Ms Morgan said the world must “respect who the country has put forward” and that Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, like any COP president, would have to “take on a role that is actually above what they currently do in their day jobs”.
Campaigners have called for Mr Al Jaber to resign from his role as head of the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Corporation, but Ms Morgan declined to say whether she would raise this with him when she meets him in February.
Asked if Germany, a long time sceptic of nuclear power, should reconsider the clean energy form, she said: “Definitely not”.
“Nuclear has massive risks on its own, it’s extremely expensive and it takes a long time to build,” she added.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Tom Heap and Victoria Seabrook discuss fossil fuel lobbyists at COP climate summits
Ms Morgan, who was in London for talks with government ministers Lord Zac Goldsmith and Graham Stewart, said it would be “safer” for the UK – which is planning vast nuclear power expansion – to steer clear.
“Going further in offshore wind, as the UK has been doing, and building it out domestically, also on land, going for energy efficiency – I think that’s a safer way to go,” she said.
Ms Morgan, who represents one of the world’s largest emitters and economies, also spoke about what keeps her awake at night.
“That we’re moving too slowly,” she said. “That the pace and scale of change isn’t fast enough, and that we have to do so many things at once.
“How do we get everyone to act as if it is the crisis that it is?”
Watch the Daily Climate Show at 3.30pm Monday to Friday, and The Climate Show with Tom Heap on Saturday and Sunday at 3.30pm and 7.30pm.
All on Sky News, on the Sky News website and app, on YouTube and Twitter.
The show investigates how global warming is changing our landscape and highlights solutions to the crisis.
Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy has met Israel’s prime minister in an effort to secure a ceasefire deal in Gaza before the president-elect takes office on 20 January.
Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed details of the meeting with Steve Witkoff on Saturday, adding that the head of the Israeli Mossad intelligence agency has been deployed to Qatar in order to “advance” talks.
It was not immediately clear when David Barnea would travel to Doha for the latest round of indirect discussions between Israel and Hamas.
Earlier on Saturday, an Israeli official said some progress had been made, mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the United States, to reach a deal in Gaza.
Ronen Bar (left), director of Israel’s security agency, and David Barnea (right), head of Mossad, at a ceremony marking the 7 October Hamas attack. File pic: Reuters
The mediators are making renewed efforts to halt fighting in Gaza and free the remaining Israeli hostages held there before Mr Trump takes office.
A deal would also involve the release of some Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
Families of Israeli hostages welcomed Mr Netanyahu’s decision to dispatch the officials, with the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters describing it as a “historic opportunity”.
Mr Witkoff arrived in Doha on Friday and met the Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Qatar’s foreign ministry said.
Egyptian and Qatari mediators received reassurances from Mr Witkoff that the US would continue to work towards a fair deal to end the war soon, Egyptian security sources said, though no further details were released.
Read more from Sky News:
Why does Donald Trump want Greenland?
Trump says Vladimir Putin wants to meet
A guide to Donald Trump’s inauguration
Israel launched its assault on Gaza after Hamas fighters stormed across its borders in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures.
Families of the roughly 100 hostages still held in Gaza are pressing Mr Netanyahu to reach a deal to bring their loved ones home.
Since then, more than 46,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials, with much of the area destroyed and gripped by a humanitarian crisis, with most of its population displaced.
Pope Francis has been honoured with America’s highest civilian award by President Joe Biden, who has described the pontiff as “a light of faith, hope, and love that shines brightly across the world”.
It is the first time Mr Biden, 82, has given the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction during his four years in office.
In a statement, the White House said the award is “presented to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavours”.
Mr Biden had been scheduled to present the medal to Pope Francis, 88, in person on Saturday in Rome on what was to be the final overseas trip of his presidency. But the president cancelled his visit to monitor the California wildfires.
The White House said Mr Biden bestowed the award during a phone call in which they also discussed efforts to promote peace and alleviate suffering around the world.
President Joe Biden presented Bono with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Pic: AP
Denzel Washington was also recognised. Pic: AP
Michael J Fox was bestowed with the honour. Pic: AP
The award can be presented with or without distinction.
Mr Biden presented the medal of freedom – without distinction – on 5 January to several people including fellow Democrat Hillary Clinton, humanitarian and U2 singer Bono, fashion designer Ralph Lauren and actors Michael J Fox and Denzel Washington.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
‘I could have beaten Trump’
Read more from Sky News:
Gay men can become priests
Search widened for missing sisters
Carrie Johnson left ‘struggling to breathe’
Mr Biden himself is a recipient of the award with distinction, recognised when he was vice president by then president Barack Obama in a surprise ceremony eight years ago.
Barack Obama presented Joe Biden with the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction in 2017. File pic: AP
The citation for the pope’s honour said his “mission of serving the poor has never ceased”.
“A loving pastor, he joyfully answers children’s questions about God. A challenging teacher, he commands us to fight for peace and protect the planet. A welcoming leader, he reaches out to different faiths,” it added.
Ukraine has captured two North Korean soldiers fighting in Russia’s Kursk region, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.
The injured pair are now in Kyiv and communicating with the Security Service of Ukraine, the country’s domestic intelligence agency, he said.
Ukrainian special forces and paratroopers captured the North Koreans, Mr Zelenskyy said in a post on X.
“As with all prisoners of war, these two North Korean soldiers are receiving the necessary medical assistance,” he said.
“I have instructed the Security Service of Ukraine to grant journalists access to these prisoners.
“The world needs to know the truth about what is happening.”
Mr Zelenskyy said capturing the soldiers alive was “not easy”. He also claimed Russian and North Korean forces fighting in Kursk have tried to conceal the presence of North Korean soldiers, including by killing wounded comrades on the battlefield to avoid their capture and interrogation by Ukraine.
The post included images of the two men – one with a bandage around his jaw and the other around both hands and wrists – and what appeared to be a Russian military document.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Ukrainian drone targets Kursk soldiers
Ukraine’s security service SBU on Saturday provided further details.
It said one of those detained had no documents at all, while the other had been carrying a Russian military ID card in the name of a man from Tuva, a Russian region bordering Mongolia.
“The prisoners do not speak Ukrainian, English or Russian, so communication with them takes place through Korean translators in cooperation with South Korean intelligence,” a statement said.
One of the soldiers claimed he had been told he was going to Russia for training, rather than to fight against Ukraine, according to the SBU.
The agency added both men are being provided with medical care in line with the Geneva Conventions, and investigated “in cooperation with South Korean intelligence”.
Read more:
Ukraine launches new offensive in Russia’s Kursk region
Russia and Ukraine swap at least 300 prisoners of war
North Korean regular troops entered the war on Russia’s side in October, according to Ukraine and its Western allies.
US, South Korean and Ukrainian intelligence assessments suggest up to 12,000 North Korean combat troops have been sent by Pyongyang under a pact with Moscow.
They believe North Korea has also been supplying Russia with vast quantities of artillery shells.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports9 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway