On the first day of the G7 devoted to the environment and organized in Paris, France estimates Thursday that it has made significant progress. However, neither the climate issue nor fossil fuels will be discussed during the two days of the summit so as not to antagonize the United States.

Published on: 04/23/2026 - 03:53 Modified on: 04/23/2026 - 21:38

Nonsense? The G7 devoted to the environment opened Thursday April 23 in Paris without addressing the climate issue, too thorny for the United States. “We have seven texts for approval and all seven will be approved,” said Monique Barbut, French Minister of Ecological Transition.

The United States “are very constructive” and “have been extremely cooperative,” she added on the sidelines of a walk with her counterparts in the Fontainebleau forest, near Paris.

The summit ends on Friday. France has put five priorities on the agenda for discussions: “Financing the protection of biodiversity, preserving the ocean, securing water resources, highlighting the links between desertification and security and increasing the resilience of our territories and our infrastructures in the face of natural risks”.

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“Environmental protection is no longer the international priority,” she admitted in her opening speech, in the presence of ministers from industrialized countries in this international forum and representatives of other partners, such as the nations which will host this year the next COPs on desertification (Mongolia) or biodiversity (Armenia).

Global warming, fossil fuels... taboo words

Themes which "all have a link with global warming", underlines Monique Barbut, while assuming not to address this question directly so as not to offend the United States. “If I had tackled the question head-on, there would be no G7,” she said.

Another taboo subject: the exit from fossil fuels, although it was discussed immediately during an unprecedented meeting of around fifty countries in Santa Marta, Colombia (April 24-29).

“A G7 at the pace of the United States cannot claim to respond to the crises of the century if it ignores the climate, ignores gender inequalities and locks itself into a short-term energy vision,” regrets Gaïa Febvre, head of international policies at the Climate Action Network (RAC), which brings together numerous NGOs, to AFP.

A symbol of the lack of interest shown by the United States in this G7, its representative is Usha-Maria Turner, the assistant administrator for International and Tribal Affairs at the American Environmental Protection Agency, a second-rank management position.

Funding of 600 million euros for biodiversity in Africa

France, however, hoped to seduce the Trump administration like its other partners with its "alliance for financing nature and people", an initiative intended to encourage public and private financing for the protection of biodiversity.

With a first realization planned by the G7 summit in Evian in June: "I think we will have concluded a discussion on a program which will be around 600 million euros, on Africa, on 22 countries, 144 protected areas", indicated Monique Barbut Thursday evening.

Of this sum, 400 million would come from philanthropic foundations, half of which comes from Rob Walton alone, heir to the American distribution giant Walmart.

“We can only rejoice that the subject of financing biodiversity has found a place in the discussions”, but “this financing must be additional and must not compensate for a parallel disengagement of States, and in particular of France”, judges Jean Burkard, director of advocacy at WWF France.

With AFP

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