Berlin, 21 April 2026 Speaking at the Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin, UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell warned that rising fossil fuel costs and global instability are driving “fossil-fuel driven stagflation,” urging stronger climate cooperation and faster implementation of clean energy solutions ahead of COP33. UN climate chief: “Climate cooperation is key to fending off the twin-reapers of global heating and fossil fuel cost chaos” UN climate chief warns of fossil-fuel stagflation, calls for accelerated clean energy action Honorable Ministers, distinguished delegates, dear friends. These are perilous times. We hope for a swift, lasting peace in the Middle East, and every conflict. But this latest war has further locked-in much higher fossil fuel costs for months and likely years to come, delivering a gut-punch to every nation and billions of households. Fossil-fuel driven stagflation is now stalking economies – driving up prices, driving down growth, pushing budgets deeper into quagmires of debt, and stripping away governments’ policy options and autonomy. Climate cooperation is key to fending off the twin-reapers of global heating and fossil fuel cost chaos. Clean energy offers security and affordability – returning sovereignty to nations and their peoples. The need to accelerate action has never been clearer, and that demands every tool at our disposal. Negotiations are one – and they remain critical. They’ve delivered landmark commitments, including at the first global stocktake at COP28. Now, in this era of implementation – we must turn them into projects on the ground, by breaking-down global targets into achievable chunks, matching them with solutions, and delivering. So that by the second global stocktake at COP33, we are on track to meet the commitments made at the first, with this international process tracking progress, helping to show what’s working, and where barriers are holding us back. Elevating the