SINGAPORE: As the United Nations-led climate talks open in Belem amid rising geopolitical tensions and trade frictions, Singapore will work to keep global climate action on course, said Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu.
She stressed that the annual summit still matters despite growing headwinds.
“This is an international process that if you are not present at the meeting, you are allowing decisions to be imposed on you,” said Ms Fu, who is also the Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations.
“It's important for us to have Singapore's voice represented in the process and where possible, we will also want to help shape decisions so that Singapore's interests and the world's interests are taken care of.”
She was speaking to the media on Monday (Nov 3), ahead of the 30th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP30), which marks three decades of global climate negotiations.
The event will be held in the Brazilian city of Belem, chosen for its proximity to the Amazon rainforest, from Nov 10 to 21.
Notably absent this year will be the United States, which will not send any high-level delegates to COP30, a White House official said last Saturday.
President Donald Trump had earlier moved to withdraw the US – the world's second biggest emitter – from the landmark Paris Agreement that underpins global climate efforts.
In his address to the UN General Assembly in September, Trump dismissed climate change as “the greatest con job” in the world.
Ms Fu, who will represent Singapore at the conference, likened the US to a student who decides to skip lessons and tells others that “not studying is quite a good idea”.
“How do we ensure that the remaining students in the class will continue to attend, pay attention and work together?” said the minister.
“You need to have alternative leadership that's providing that pathway.”
Her remarks come as US tariffs and supply chain disruptions spill into the clean energy sector and related areas, developments she said are “not going to help” COP negotiations.
Experts told CNA that these challenges are already weakening countries’ bargaining positions, as businesses grapple with higher costs and softer demand – putting added pressure on governments to be more cautious in their commitments.
Despite the setbacks, Ms Fu believes there will be “strong momentum” from Singapore and other like-minded countries to keep climate efforts on track.
“All the other parties will have to then work doubly hard, to pull together a process that now has different parts that are pulling at its seams,” she stressed.
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during a roundtable with leaders of tropical forest countries and nations committed to investing in the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) during the COP30 UN Climate Summit in Belem, Brazil, Thursday, Nov 6, 2025. (Photo: AP/Fernando Llano)
This year's summit also marks 10 years since nearly 200 countries signed the Paris Agreement to avoid the worst consequences of climate change.
But there are growing doubts over whether there will be tangible progress. Many countries, for instance, have yet to deliver their updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
Various leaders, including Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, have called for COP30 to focus on implementation and accountability.
While some may view progress as slow, Ms Fu said there have, in fact, been “significant movements” from renewable energy adoption to broader decarbonisation efforts.
She urged countries to follow through on their climate pledges and pay more attention to adaptation efforts that address rising risks to businesses and communities.
“It's important for the others to remain committed,” she said. “One of the greatest challenges is to get all the leaders and ministers to affirm their commitment to the Paris Agreement, as well as to multilateralism.”
Singapore is looking forward to sharing practical solutions and exchanging ideas at the two-week meeting, she added.
“We don't have all the solutions in Singapore – not at all – but we are working towards them,” said the minister, who plans to devote more time at this year’s COP to engaging her counterparts and exploring collaborative projects.
“We're looking forward to having deep discussions with our partners (and) interested parties to make progress, bring some of these solutions to their countries, and also for us to import and embrace some of the solutions that they have.”
A drone image shows the Amazon rainforest and the city of Belem in the back ahead of COP30, at Ilha do Combu, in Belem, Para state, Brazil, Aug 10, 2025. (File photo: Reuters/Anderson Coelho)
During the interview, Ms Fu said that the global carbon market “is still very nascent” with overlapping standards.
At the last COP, countries finalised the rules for a global carbon market under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, establishing a framework for the international trade of carbon credits.
Carbon credits can be generated from projects that reduce or remove carbon emissions – such as restoring forests or investing in renewable energy. They can be traded on carbon markets, allowing entities to offset emissions they cannot eliminate through their own operations.
But their credibility has come under scrutiny amid accusations of greenwashing.
“What we are doing now is also to try to consolidate and harmonise, so that the market can actually have fewer regulations and standards to deal with,” said Ms Fu.
She also touched on how investors are increasingly assessing how well countries can adapt to climate risks – something Singapore wants to be ready for.
“We need to (give) adaptation the sufficient and appropriate attention that it deserves,” she said.
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She stressed that the annual summit still matters despite growing headwinds.
“This is an international process that if you are not present at the meeting, you are allowing decisions to be imposed on you,” said Ms Fu, who is also the Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations.
“It's important for us to have Singapore's voice represented in the process and where possible, we will also want to help shape decisions so that Singapore's interests and the world's interests are taken care of.”
She was speaking to the media on Monday (Nov 3), ahead of the 30th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP30), which marks three decades of global climate negotiations.
The event will be held in the Brazilian city of Belem, chosen for its proximity to the Amazon rainforest, from Nov 10 to 21.
US SKIPS CLIMATE SUMMIT
Notably absent this year will be the United States, which will not send any high-level delegates to COP30, a White House official said last Saturday.
President Donald Trump had earlier moved to withdraw the US – the world's second biggest emitter – from the landmark Paris Agreement that underpins global climate efforts.
In his address to the UN General Assembly in September, Trump dismissed climate change as “the greatest con job” in the world.
Ms Fu, who will represent Singapore at the conference, likened the US to a student who decides to skip lessons and tells others that “not studying is quite a good idea”.
“How do we ensure that the remaining students in the class will continue to attend, pay attention and work together?” said the minister.
“You need to have alternative leadership that's providing that pathway.”
Her remarks come as US tariffs and supply chain disruptions spill into the clean energy sector and related areas, developments she said are “not going to help” COP negotiations.
Experts told CNA that these challenges are already weakening countries’ bargaining positions, as businesses grapple with higher costs and softer demand – putting added pressure on governments to be more cautious in their commitments.
Despite the setbacks, Ms Fu believes there will be “strong momentum” from Singapore and other like-minded countries to keep climate efforts on track.
“All the other parties will have to then work doubly hard, to pull together a process that now has different parts that are pulling at its seams,” she stressed.
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during a roundtable with leaders of tropical forest countries and nations committed to investing in the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) during the COP30 UN Climate Summit in Belem, Brazil, Thursday, Nov 6, 2025. (Photo: AP/Fernando Llano)
PARIS AGREEMENT AT CROSSROADS
This year's summit also marks 10 years since nearly 200 countries signed the Paris Agreement to avoid the worst consequences of climate change.
But there are growing doubts over whether there will be tangible progress. Many countries, for instance, have yet to deliver their updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
Various leaders, including Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, have called for COP30 to focus on implementation and accountability.
While some may view progress as slow, Ms Fu said there have, in fact, been “significant movements” from renewable energy adoption to broader decarbonisation efforts.
She urged countries to follow through on their climate pledges and pay more attention to adaptation efforts that address rising risks to businesses and communities.
“It's important for the others to remain committed,” she said. “One of the greatest challenges is to get all the leaders and ministers to affirm their commitment to the Paris Agreement, as well as to multilateralism.”
Singapore is looking forward to sharing practical solutions and exchanging ideas at the two-week meeting, she added.
“We don't have all the solutions in Singapore – not at all – but we are working towards them,” said the minister, who plans to devote more time at this year’s COP to engaging her counterparts and exploring collaborative projects.
“We're looking forward to having deep discussions with our partners (and) interested parties to make progress, bring some of these solutions to their countries, and also for us to import and embrace some of the solutions that they have.”
A drone image shows the Amazon rainforest and the city of Belem in the back ahead of COP30, at Ilha do Combu, in Belem, Para state, Brazil, Aug 10, 2025. (File photo: Reuters/Anderson Coelho)
GLOBAL CARBON MARKET CHALLENGES
During the interview, Ms Fu said that the global carbon market “is still very nascent” with overlapping standards.
At the last COP, countries finalised the rules for a global carbon market under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, establishing a framework for the international trade of carbon credits.
Carbon credits can be generated from projects that reduce or remove carbon emissions – such as restoring forests or investing in renewable energy. They can be traded on carbon markets, allowing entities to offset emissions they cannot eliminate through their own operations.
But their credibility has come under scrutiny amid accusations of greenwashing.
“What we are doing now is also to try to consolidate and harmonise, so that the market can actually have fewer regulations and standards to deal with,” said Ms Fu.
She also touched on how investors are increasingly assessing how well countries can adapt to climate risks – something Singapore wants to be ready for.
“We need to (give) adaptation the sufficient and appropriate attention that it deserves,” she said.
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