2m ago
11.18 EDT
UK and
Italy talk about clean energy on margins of King Charles's visit
Fiona Harvey
Also in
Rome, David Lammy, the UK’s foreign secretary, met his counterpart, Italy’s
foreign minister and deputy prime minister, Antonio Tajani, for talks on clean
energy on Wednesday, including on the issue of “critical minerals”, which are
essential to the manufacture of low-carbon goods, such as solar panels, wind
turbines and electric vehicles.
The
ministers agreed on the need to boost renewable energy around the world, in the
midst of economic turmoil – forming a counterpoint to Donald Trump, who has
issued fresh executive orders blocking climate policies by several states, and
supporting coal.
It is often
forgotten that Italy was the UK’s partner in hosting the Cop26 climate summit
in 2021. That partnership was agreed in late 2019, months before the Covid-19
crisis overtook the world, which overshadowed the conference and made joint
events more difficult in the run-up. But the countries have continued a
dialogue since then, to push for greater adoption of low-carbon technologies
and the creation of green jobs, which has continued despite the differences in
outlook of their respective leaders.
King
Charles, who is visiting Italy, and Italy’s president Sergio Mattarella were
expected to drop in on the talks in the late afternoon. Later this month, the
UK will also host a global conference in London, along with the International
Energy Agency, to discuss energy security.
Lammy said:
“The UK
and Italy are strengthening our partnership to unlock growth opportunities,
create jobs and accelerate the global transition to clean, secure, affordable
energy. The shift to clean energy is a global challenge that requires us all –
governments, energy businesses and the financial sector – to work together.
Our talks
in Rome are a key moment to unlock clean growth and build robust clean energy
supply chains, including for critical minerals – for the benefit of us all.”
Tajani
said:
“Energy
is a key driver of growth for our businesses, our economies and our societies.
Italy and the United Kingdom share common objectives with regard to the energy
transition, which are also clearly outlined in our 2023 Memorandum of
Understanding on Bilateral Cooperation: technological neutrality, achieving net
zero emissions by 2050, phasing out coal for energy production and increasing
the role of renewables and new technologies for the production of clean energy.
“We
actively cooperated for the success of the Cop26 in Glasgow, launching a major
project at the 2021 pre-CoP in Milan for the involvement of young people
committed to the fight against climate change.
We also
share the vision that inspired many initiatives promoted by Italy during its
presidency of the G7, especially with regard to access to energy in Africa,
where we are actively engaged also through the Mattei Plan.”
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