Iran war should trigger faster exit from fossil fuel dependence, UN climate chief says

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https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/cop/iran-war-an-abject-lesson-fossil-fuel-dependence-un-climate-chief-says-2026-03-16/

By Kate Abnett
March 16, 2026 1:01 AM EDT

Summary

• Iran crisis upends global oil and gas supplies
• UN climate chief says fossil fuel reliance is security risk
• European gas prices up 50% since war began

BRUSSELS, March 16 (Reuters) - The disruption ‌to energy markets caused by the Iran war is a lesson on the risks of relying on fossil fuels which should drive governments to wean their economies off oil and gas faster, the U.N. climate secretary told ​Reuters on Monday.

"If there was ever a moment to accelerate that energy transition, ​breaking dependencies which have shackled economies, this is the time," Simon ⁠Stiell, Executive Secretary of the U.N. climate change arm UNFCCC, said in an interview.

Stiell, ​who will meet EU officials and government ministers in Brussels on Monday, said the ​price spikes triggered by the conflict demonstrated how heavy reliance on imported oil and gas threatened national security and the cost of living.

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Leaders of the EU, which imports more than 90% of its ​oil and 80% of its gas, are drafting emergency measures to shield consumers from rising energy bills ‌and ⁠avoid a repeat of record-high energy prices in 2022 after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

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