New Zealand has withdrawn from the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance, after announcing $200 million of funding to support new drilling for fossil gas. While the NZ government has sought to promote a prosperous and resilient Pacific, this move is in direct violation of many agreements in place to protect the region from climate catastrophe.

Fenton Lutunatabua, 350.org Deputy Head of Regions says,

“Instead of securing a safe future for all countries in the Pacific, the New Zealand government has decided to hammer nails into our coffins. Many will feel this move is a betrayal to Pacific neighbours, but it is in fact a betrayal of their own future generations as well. We see the increased flooding in New Zealand, and we mirror that pain in our own storm surge and coastal inundation. How the Luxon government thinks that bankrolling fossil fuels is the right decision for any of our futures is absurd. Withdrawing from the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance, committing $200 million to new fossil gas and cutting climate finance, it’s a triple blow for the region. This sets New Zealand way off track from achieving the target they agreed to in the Paris Agreement, a limit of 1.5 degrees of global heating. This limit is the hard line we’ve drawn for our survival. We want a future where all people of the Pacific Ocean can survive the climate crisis, it is clear the Luxon government does not share that goal.”

Alisi Rabukawaqa-Nacewa, Pacific Climate Warriors Council Elder says,

“This decision directly conflicts with New Zealand’s own foreign policy objectives for a stable, prosperous and resilient Pacific. How are we meant to trust New Zealand as a partner to our island nations when they bankroll our greatest threat? This is a betrayal and completely misaligned with the spirit of Pacific regionalism.”

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