Key Points
- Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has urged world leaders to accelerate net-zero efforts.
- He was speaking on the first day of the G20 summit in New Delhi.
- 'Climate has already changed', he said.
The prime minister has used a speech at the G20 summit to urge countries to commit to net-zero to lessen the impact of devastating natural disasters.
Speaking on the first day of the global summit in New Delhi on Saturday, Anthony Albanese said urgent action was needed to prevent further exacerbation of climate change.
"Our communities have endured another year of extreme climate impacts," he told world leaders at the summit.
"Devastating weather events have affected so many nations, including Australia.
"The science is clear: our climate has already changed. We are united in our ambition for a net-zero future.
"Now we must turn our hands to action: urgent, comprehensive action."
During his intervention at the summit, Albanese touted the federal government's own net-zero transformation and $40 billion for energy transformation projects.
He urged the G20 economies to increase production of renewable energy technology.
Albanese said Australia was committed to stepping up on climate action.
"Australia has long been a reliable global energy supplier, and we continue to be, but as the world decarbonises, what we export will change," he said.
"We are expanding our capacity to provide the minerals, metals and clean energy components to help decarbonise our region."
Albanese was greeted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is hosting the summit.
The global talks come amid rising tensions in the Indo-Pacific and increasing Chinese aggression.
Tensions are expected on the G20's statement regarding the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has skipped the summit, with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov attending in his place.
During his speech, Albanese hit out at Russia's invasion, which has been ongoing since early 2022.
"(Prime Minister Modi) has steered the G20 through another challenging year, a year made all the more challenging, of course, by Russia's illegal and immoral invasion of Ukraine, which I condemn in the strongest terms," he said.
Early reports suggest a stalemate on the wording of how to address the Ukraine invasion had delayed agreement on an official communique from the summit, with Russia unlikely to sign off on a condemnation of its military action.
Another major world leader, Chinese President Xi Jinping, has also opted not to attend following tensions between China and India.
China's second-in-command, Premier Li Qiang, is representing the Asian nation at the summit.
Albanese had already met with Li in Jakarta on Thursday on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit.
Australia had been looking to de-escalate tensions with China, following the scrapping of trade tariffs on barley.
Later in the day, Albanese will hold bilateral talks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
He will also attend talks as part of MIKTA, a gathering of summit leaders from Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey and Australia.
The prime minister held informal talks overnight with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on a free-trade agreement between Australia and the EU, which had previously been stalled in negotiations.
The pair spoke about finalising the agreement as soon as possible.
New Delhi has come to a standstill due to the summit, with police closing off large sections of the city.
Nearby businesses and schools have been instructed to close as part of security measures
During the opening remarks, Modi said the G20 had agreed to add the African Union, made up of 55 countries from the continent, as a permanent member of the bloc.
