Climate spending must top defence, says Cop31 host

Wealthy countries should spend far more on the climate crisis than the 5% of GDP that Nato members have promised for defence, because "the climate issue is the security issue," the host of the next UN climate summit has said. Murat Kurum, president-designate of Cop31, made the comment at a Pacific pre-Cop summit in Fiji. His position may prove contentious. He declined to say whether countries should repeat a previous agreement to "transition away from fossil fuels" — the main cause of the climate crisis — when they meet in Turkey next month.