Disappointingly, applications for side events addressing military emissions and spending were not accepted this time round at Bonn. Yet with military spending at an all time high, NATO’s future plans for even higher spending, genocide ongoing in Palestine and the war in Ukraine with no end in sight, military related issues were present ‘on the ground’ if not on the agenda.
TWO REPORTS PUBLISHED FOR BONN
NATO’s 3.5% Spending Goal: Unsustainable on Every Count. New analysis by Tipping Point North South, TNI and Stop Wapenhandel shows NATO’s rapid military build‑up is already undermining global climate goals and threatening to divert trillions from clean‑energy investment.
https://transformdefence.org/publication/natos-3-5-spending-goal/
‘The alarming rise of false climate solutions in Africa ― the nuclear energy misadventure’ has been prepared by campaigners as a collective advocacy report with a number of strong recommendations that reflect the breadth of civil society’s shared concerns about the development of nuclear energy across the continent. They are united in a call for a nuclear free Africa, safe from the dangers of nuclear energy and instead building a future powered by clean, affordable solutions.
https://transformdefence.org/publication/the-nuclear-energy-misadventure/
BONN MEDIA COVERAGE NATO REPORT
Our German co-publisher IPPNW secured this article in German magazine Stern.
Our TNI co-author Nick Buxton secured an op-ed for Al Jazeera about the danger of NATO’s 5% target, based on the briefing’s analysis.
BONN EVENTS: MILITARY SPENDING & EMISSIONS
Interfaith Liaison Committee Press Conference
Deborah was invited to speak on military spending and climate finance at the Interfaith Liaison Committee press conference for the launch of their Climate Justice Call to Action
Deborah’s contribution here.
CAN Intl Press Conference on Palestine/End the Siege
CAN International held a packed press conference to address the UNFCCC Secretariat’s censorship of Palestine solidarity actions, specifically the phrase “end the siege”. Deborah was able to raise the issue of Israel’s doubling of its military spending in one year; also referencing Israel’s attacks on Iran.
More on this issue: https://climatenetwork.org/2025/06/21/unfccc-censorship-of-palestine-solidarity-ngos-at-bonn-sb-62-call-out-moral-crisis-within-the-un-climate-process-2/
Disarming the Climate Crisis – Climate Camp
The climate camp runs a programme of activity in parallel to the main conference. Organised by the Peace and Demilitarisation working group the session looked at the impact of rising military spending on the MENA region specifically and the global south more widely. Hosted by Laura Wunder from IPPNW Germany, with speakers Fatemah Khafegy and Deborah Burton. (An article based on this session is being drafted)
BONN EVENTS: NUCLEAR ENERGY IN AFRICA
There was a side event held in the first week to promote nuclear power across Africa with speakers from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Economic Commission for Africa. To a packed room we asked two direct questions to both speakers (i) that nuclear energy will severely crowd out already precious and inadequate climate finance for mitigation, adaption and renewable energy generation projects and (ii) the grave concerns that many NGOs have about the lack of capacity to manage nuclear power plants safely and securely.
Thirty copies of the report Exec Summary were handed to attendees.
MEDIA COVERAGE of the report across the African continent has been extensive.
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BONN NEWS SUMMARY
Countries reach hard-fought compromise on climate adaptation metrics in Bonn
AHEAD OF COP30 …BRAZIL IS UNAFRAID TO CALL OUT MILITARY SPENDING
Brazilian officials have rebuked the push to increase defence spending, as it tries to bring countries together for negotiations on tackling climate change later in the year.Last year’s COP climate conference ended in disappointment after failing to cough up anything like enough money to help countries cope with already rising sea levels, heavier floods and harsher droughts, which are forcing people to migrate. But this week NATO member states broadly agreed to a US demand to boost defence spending to 5% of gross domestic product. Leaders are anxious about military threats from Russia and terrorism, while the number of global conflicts and people killed in them have been rising since the 2000s. Brazil’s climate minister Marina Silva, in London to drum up support before Brazil hosts COP30 in November, admitted countries are somewhat “preoccupied”. “We have been discussing for so many years, the $100bn, the $300bn, and then now the $1.3 trillion targets that we need [for climate funding],” she told a news conference on Thursday. And then “very swiftly, there is an announcement of the increase of 5% in the expenditure in defence” when that money “ought to be going in the other direction”, she said via a translator.The money should be used not to fight wars but for “fighting hunger [and] the climate emergency“, she added. The UK in February raided its foreign aid budget to boost defence spending, prompting warnings it will struggle to keep its £11.6bn climate aid promise
Her comments echo those of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who last week told G7 leaders: “Year after year, wars and conflicts accumulate. “Military spending annually consumes the equivalent to Italy’s GDP. “This corresponds to $2.7 trillion that could be invested in hunger eradication and the just transition.” In Ukraine, “only dialogue between the parties can lead to a ceasefire and pave the way for lasting peace”, he said.
Tipping Point North South 