Germany warns climate change could fuel migration, extremism

Climate change could reshape global security and drive new waves of migration, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on Tuesday, warning that its effects could fuel famine, extremism and terrorism in fragile states.

"Climate change is exacerbating hardship and hunger, especially in fragile states, and can thus also become a breeding ground for extremism and terrorism or lead to waves of migration," the minister said at the start of a climate and security conference in Berlin.

Wadephul warned that the record ongoing El Niño weather phenomenon is threatening to destroy the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people.

In Sudan, a lack of rain is exacerbating drought, he said. Meanwhile, low water levels in the Panama Canal are leading to fewer ship transits, putting pressure on global supply chains.

Investments in tackling climate change are also investments in security, Wadephul said. 

The conference brings together around 250 international representatives from the fields of climate, peace and security, including representatives of particularly affected countries, the United Nations, the European Union and other international organizations, as well as scientists and civil society groups.

Wadephul insisted that the impacts of climate change should not be considered in isolation. 

"Wherever war and crises prevail, climate change further exacerbates the situation," he said, adding that malicious actors could attempt to use the effects of climate change "as a weapon."

He pointed to rising global grain prices, saying Russia was attacking grain ships in the Black Sea and cutting off supplies to people around the world who were particularly dependent on imports.

If Russia again deliberately attacks Ukraine's energy infrastructure at the end of the year, decentralized renewable energy sources could become a lifeline, he said. Such sources would be harder to destroy and would not depend on imports of fossil fuels.