PORTOROZ, Oct 21 (Xinhua/APP): Leaders of nine Mediterranean and Southern European Union (MED9) member states on Monday called for increased EU investments to help countries prepare for the challenges posed by climate change.
The meeting of the MED9 group, which includes France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Croatia, Malta, Cyprus, and the host Slovenia, was also attended by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Together, the nine countries represent about 45 percent of the EU’s population.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said at a joint press conference that 15 percent of defense spending should be allocated to climate emergency and civil protection measures, emphasizing that adaptation policies must address floods and the wider impacts of climate change.
He underlined that European security and defense policies must incorporate measures to address climate-related risks. Southern European countries have in recent years been severely affected by climate change, experiencing extreme heat, wildfires, and deadly floods.
Most EU states have pledged to raise defense spending to 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2035 as part of their commitments to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which includes 23 of the 27 EU countries.
Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro stressed the need for stronger efforts to prepare for climate-related challenges and called for a simplification of EU rules on investments, including those targeting climate change mitigation and adaptation.
The leaders also advocated for the establishment of a common European energy market and urged the EU to take measures to strengthen its international competitiveness.