Many countries in Africa and Latin America believe the West is imposing the idea of climate colonialism by enforcing costly, unnecessary technologies, Russian President Vladimir Putin said during a meeting with participants of the International Congress of Young Scientists on Monday.
One of the participants told the president that he recently attended a climate-focused event where experts compared the costs of environmental protection measures with their actual effectiveness.
"Many of these representatives [from African countries and Latin America] say that the West is now promoting the idea of so-called 'climate colonialism.' That is, imposing such technologies on these countries, expensive technologies [in the field of reducing greenhouse gas emissions], which they cannot afford, without helping them. It also includes imposing some things that aren't particularly necessary for implementation of these technologies," Putin said.
At the BRICS Summit in late October, Putin echoed similar sentiments, criticizing how the climate agenda is being used to pressure countries to abandon nuclear energy, coal, and hydrocarbons. He accused the US and many European nations of misusing the environmental agenda.
Putin questioned whether Africa could realistically function without hydrocarbons, noting that African and other developing countries are being pressured to adopt modern environmental technologies, which may be effective in preserving the environment, but are imposed without considering local needs or capabilities.
Furthermore, in late November, developing countries voiced criticism over a draft agreement for $300 billion in climate finance negotiated at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) in Baku. India, along with several African nations, argued that the proposed amount for climate initiatives is far below the $1.3 trillion they had requested to address their needs.