United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed for a deal from the COP30 climate summit on the hotly-disputed subject of weaning the world off fossil fuels.
The summit in the Amazon city of Belém, Brazil, missed a self-imposed deadline yesterday for a deal to secure agreement among the nearly 200 countries present on issues including how to increase climate finance and shift away from fossil fuels.
Mr Guterres told the negotiations from 194 countries plus the European Union that limiting global warming to 1.5C of warming must be their only red line.
He said this is the hour for leadership and asked them to be bold, to follow the science, to put people before profit, and to please keep their eyes on the finish line.
"I welcome calls for a just transition mechanism and the growing coalition asking for clarity on the transition away from fossil fuel," he told a press conference at the summit.
Watch: Guterres says the 'world is watching Belém'
There are less than 48 hours until the scheduled end of the summit to find a consensus, which host nation Brazil has framed as a crucial step to ramping up climate action and demonstrating that there is broad support to accelerate turning decades of promises and pledges into concrete action.
"One thing is clear, we are down to the wire, and the world is watching Belém," Mr Guterres said.
"I strongly appeal to all delegations to show willingness and flexibility."
The future of fossil fuels has become a focal point for the two-week negotiation.
Taking their cue from Brazil, dozens of countries including both developed and developing nations have mounted a push for a road map setting out how countries should transition away from fossil fuels.
Others, including some fossil fuel producing nations, are resisting.
"Science tells us that a temporary overshoot above 1.5C, starting at the latest in the early 2030s has become inevitable.
"We know what that means - more heat and hunger, more disasters and displacement, and the higher risk of crossing climate tipping points unleashing irreversible damage, including here in the Amazon," Mr Guterres said.
He said however, that the rise in global temperatures can be brought back below 1.5C before the end of this century, if countries act now to make this overshoot as small, short and safe as possible.
The COP28 climate summit in 2023 agreed, after protracted discussion, to a transition, but nations have not mapped out how - or when - it will happen.
"I am perfectly convinced that a compromise is possible," Mr Guterres added.
Additional reporting by George Lee
