UN conference backs two-state solution, calls on Israel to commit to a Palestinian state
The 'New York Declaration' sets out a phased plan to end the nearly eight-decade conflict and the ongoing war in Gaza. The plan would culminate with an independent, demilitarized Palestine living side by side peacefully with Israel, and the nation's eventual integration into the wider Mideast region.
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Time Magazine
an hour ago
- Time Magazine
The Rise of Green Wall St.
The Great Hall in the City of London's Guildhall might seem like an odd place to anchor a climate summit. At a time when leading climate thinkers are increasingly calling for systemic change, it screams tradition. Built in 1411, the medieval auditorium is a homage to age-old British institutions and customs with stained glass windows honoring lord mayors and monarchs. The dissonance is only amplified by its surroundings: a square mile housing the world's leading financial institutions, gleaming towers of banks and investment firms with proprietors historically far more focused on adding up their financial returns than on calculating progress toward net-zero emissions. And yet Guildhall—and the City, as the financial district is known—were the center of the action in June when 45,000 climate advocates from around the world descended on London for its annual 'Climate Action Week.' To participate, attendees hopped between meetings at Guildhall, the London Stock Exchange, and the myriad banks, insurers, and other financial institutions found in the area. The location was no coincidence. To tackle climate change will require moving immense sums of money—and the institutions located in the City of London have money to lend and invest. But the decision wasn't entirely, or even primarily, altruistic. Positioning London as the key node in the world of sustainable finance could pay off big as the sector continues to grow. A boom in jobs and wealth will be bestowed wherever banks and financial institutions focused on this issue set up shop. Estimates on the size of the opportunity vary depending on methodology, but most research suggests that by the 2030s the value of sustainable finance will reach double-digit trillions. 'What we've got here is an economic growth story of the 21st century,' says Alok Sharma, the former British Cabinet minister who served as president of the 2021 U.N. climate conference in Glasgow. 'This isn't just about climate.' Sharma, whose soft-spoken disposition belies his convening power in the climate space, is now charged with the important task of wrangling the financial sector, government, and industry to chart a path forward for the country as the chair of the Transition Finance Council. The council, launched by the British government and the City of London, is working through how to leverage the city's deep capital markets and history of financial innovation to make the city—and the country—the world's green-finance leader. 'We have a financial ecosystem in London which very few markets can actually rival,' he notes. London has succeeded in taking pole position, but it's far from the only place that's caught on. Across the globe, financial hubs—largely in Europe and Asia—have launched efforts to attract the growing sustainable-finance industry. Leaning into their global connections and deep capital markets, Abu Dhabi and Singapore have emerged as leading contenders giving London a run for its money. In many ways, the effort in these three cities—and around the world—is collaborative. Growth in the sector will lift all boats. But it's also fiercely competitive. The city—or cities—that win will not only bring jobs and wealth but also give victors outsize influence shaping the future of both the global financial system and the fight against climate change. Walking through the City of London today can feel a bit like tracing the history of global finance. The modern Bank of England, a cornerstone of the country's financial might, sits only a short stroll from its original 1694 location. The age-old cemeteries sprinkled between today's glass office buildings serve as the final resting place for some of London's original financiers. And, in some cases, even the odd-sounding street names tie back to the city's financial roots: Lombard Street, named for the Italian region known for its bankers and merchants, or Ironmonger Lane, which once housed the metal-trading houses. At its core, London's sustainable-finance opportunity is part and parcel with this history. In today's parlance, innovation tends to refer to technological innovation, but many of the biggest breakthroughs to emerge from London over the centuries were financial—from the launch of the world's first joint-stock companies in the 16th century, which pioneered risk sharing among investors and created some of the world's first tradable securities, to pioneering of the modern insurance market in the 17th century by Lloyd's of London. In short, over some 500 years, British financiers built the foundations of today's global financial system. Now, these foundations need some climate-minded reinvention—and at lightning speed. The International Energy Agency estimates that investment in clean energy must reach $4.5 trillion annually in the 2030s to meet climate goals. To get that money to the Global South, where it is most needed, will require new financial structures that make investing less risky. In some corners of the globe, most importantly the U.S., the push to tweak the rules of the road has been met with soft denial. The federal government has halted efforts to think through the financial disclosure of climate risk and exited cooperative efforts with other countries aimed at greening the financial system. In London, leaders in both government and in the private sector are jumping on the opportunity. 'Britain is open for business,' says Sharma. 'We are a very established market, but you can't sort of sit there and rest on your laurels.' Even for a close watcher of the climate-finance space, it can be difficult to keep track of everything coming out of London. Under both of the country's major parties in recent years, the British government has launched a flurry of efforts to help its financial-services industry lead the global sustainable-finance movement. The Financial Conduct Authority has worked on greenwashing regulations and the standards for applying a sustainable label to products. The Green Finance Institute was created in 2019 to coordinate public-private efforts. In 2021, the Treasury launched green-bonds sales to demonstrate government commitment to the sector. And, last year, the current government created a national wealth fund to invest in a range of low-carbon technologies—attracting private finance in the process. Since launching earlier this year, Sharma's Transition Finance Council has quickly become an essential node. The group focuses specifically on transition finance, the branch of sustainable finance where money is invested not only to build clean technologies but also to decarbonize big sources of emissions. Think of lending to an oil company to fix leaks in its pipes to stop methane from seeping out, or putting up the money for a steel producer to convert to a less emissions-intensive process. In other mainstream approaches, green technology or ESG-related investing that tries to identify and protect against environmental risks is prioritized. In -transition finance, you can run to the problem and spend money trying to fix it—even if that means financing a dirty industry for a short while. In some jurisdictions, transition finance is a thorny subject because it means dealing with polluting industries. But it's a big opportunity—both for the financial sector and the planet. The World Economic Forum estimates that transition finance for carbon-heavy sectors including aviation, shipping, and steel production represents a $13.5 trillion opportunity in the coming decades. These so-called hard-to-abate sectors make up 40% of global emissions today. The Transition Finance Council sounds wonky—and it is. The body of government officials, investors, and top executives in industry and finance was formed to work through the technicalities of key issues hand in hand with the private sector. One subcommittee tackles 'credibility and integrity,' another works on 'pathways, policies, and governance.' The Transition Finance Market Review report released last year ahead of the group's launch explores how firms navigate 'credible third-party standards' and 'carbon budget delivery plans.' Splashy public-facing marketing campaign this is not. And yet, this is the sort of work needed to give firms the confidence to set up their transition-finance shop in London. Vanessa Havard-Williams, who founded the ESG practice at global law firm Linklaters, led the report and described the work as an aggressive consultation effort across the public and private sectors and in countries around the world. The council is currently crafting 'credibility guidelines' at a firm level for transition finance with an eye to launching a global consultation process just ahead of this year's U.N. climate conference in Brazil, she says. Illustration by Kathleen Fu for TIME Despite all of this, many climate advocates have complained that much of the British regulatory regime is moving more slowly than across the Channel in the E.U. But that's part of the plan. Over the past decade, the E.U. laid out a suite of regulations that the financial industry has complained is too onerous. The U.K., which has the freedom to chart its own rules after officially leaving the E.U. in 2020, has tried to take advantage of that dynamic with less complex rule-making. 'I'm not a Brexiteer, but I do think Europe constrained our abilities,' says Chris Hayward, policy chairman of the City of London. 'On green finance, I think we're free to flex our wings.' The complicated history of colonialism offers another advantage. No matter the dark legacies, Britain walked away with relationships with emerging markets and developing countries. The London Stock Exchange hosts more international companies than any other major bourse, with a strong roster of listed firms from Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. Commonwealth countries, the network of former colonies that still maintain a loose alliance, still use London as a primary listing venue for their largest companies, and British banks and asset managers have extensive operations across these markets. Not too long ago, London promoters might have said 'the sun doesn't set on the British Empire' to indicate the scope of British influence. Today, as Sharma puts it more delicately, 'we're in a very good time zone.' More than 3,000 miles away, Abu Dhabi has its own global network, forged through its position selling vast quantities of oil to the rest of the world. For that very reason, a cynical climate advocate might look at the city's push into sustainable finance with deep skepticism. Drive across the capital of the United Arab Emirates, and you'll see nonstop reminders that this is oil-and-gas country—from the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company logo affixed on prominent skyscrapers to the network of fossil-fuel infrastructure just off the coastline. But also prominently fixed in the city's skyline are the sleek buildings that host the money managers overseeing more than $1 trillion in capital. The funds may have come from selling oil to the world, but leaders in the Emirates know that sooner or later they will need to diversify—and attracting sustainable finance is a key part of their agenda. From a corner office at Al Maryah Tower, in the heart of Abu Dhabi's posh international business district, Majid Al Suwaidi runs a $30 billion climate fund known as Alterra. Financed with money from the Emirati government, the fund is designed to make return-oriented investments that will have meaningful climate impact. Opportunities in the Global South receive particular attention. When it was announced in 2023, experts working at the intersection of finance and climate hailed its approach as unique. Alterra describes itself as a 'fund of funds,' meaning that it takes a broad strategic view while relying on other fund managers to do the on-the-ground investing. And, with its size and influential backing, Alterra works with other co-investors to scale up the impact. The goal is to use the UAE's contribution to mobilize a total of $250 billion. 'In a way, we achieved what we set out to do, which is to prove that there was an appetite and interest for people to invest in the Global South,' says Al Suwaidi. The UAE plans to earn a healthy return on its $30 billion investment, but the opportunity is really much bigger. Alterra is the center of an emerging business cluster, much like venture capital in Silicon Valley or the entertainment industry in Hollywood. By tapping into the business of financing climate infrastructure in the Global South early, the country is placing a down payment for capturing a much bigger opportunity. Emerging markets represent the largest source of emissions reduction or prevention. And that means, sooner or later, significant capital must flow to make it happen. 'The ecosystem is building here,' Al Suwaidi told me from his office, explaining that the Alterra fund has helped attract smaller climate-focused fund managers. Today, Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the city's financial free zone where regulation is based on English common law, counts more than 170 local funds and other institutions that say they are focused on sustainability. Indeed, ADGM, Abu Dhabi's Wall Street, has created an entire system to put wind in the sails of these efforts. The organization has crafted a comprehensive sustainable-finance regulatory framework that includes environmental standards for funds, portfolios, bonds, stocks, and other financial instruments linked to the environment. ESG disclosure standards are clear and simple. 'We've been busy,' says Lawrence Paramasivam, who oversees the sustainability work at the Financial Services Regulatory Authority at ADGM. Paramasivam describes the regulatory approach as 'part of a broader diversification strategy' for ADGM. The global reach and sway of the government in the UAE has helped open doors. The country is a bridge between north and south, east and west, with friendly relations with virtually every country. It follows that it can help navigate those financial flows too. It's hard to find an economic-growth story as revered as Singapore's. The country transformed from a low-income nation into a financial powerhouse in just a few generations, driven in large part by deliberate investments and a thoughtful approach to economic policymaking. Today, Singapore is placing a long-term bet on climate—and hoping that it can own the future of sustainable finance in Asia. 'The timeline is not set by business cycles. It is not set by the electoral cycles,' said Ravi Menon, Singapore's climate ambassador, at a June event in London. 'The planet's timeline will eventually impose its will on us.' And, when it does, Singapore wants to be prepared. To fully understand Singapore's approach would require unpacking a dizzying array of programs, international partnerships, and regulatory structures. Through the Singapore-Asia Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance, the country created a framework to rate investments on their sustainability characteristics. Critically, the program was developed with all of Asia in mind, helping advance the country's position at the middle of the region's flow of sustainable finance. And the government ponied up $500 million as the public-sector contribution to a finance initiative that combines public and private money to invest in climate projects in the region. That effort has attracted other funds, including from the private sector, says Menon. A key asset for Singapore is Temasek, the country's $300 billion state-owned investment fund. The fund's charter includes a mandate to protect the planet, but just as important is the fund's goal of providing long-term returns for generations to come. 'If I'm going to hold assets for the long term, then I've got to think about what it means to be in a climate-challenged position,' said Dilhan Pillay-Sandrasegara, the CEO of Temasek, at a World Economic Forum event in January. 'And so that's what motivates us to invest in things like sustainability-focused sectors or sustainable solutions.' One essential area of interest for Temasek has been carbon-credit companies. Today, carbon credits remain complicated and controversial. And yet most experts deep in the weeds of climate policy and finance see their growth as an inevitability because they provide one of the most effective ways to finance emissions reduction and can easily channel money from the Global North to the Global South. Temasek's investments in carbon-credit companies, combined with government policy to facilitate it, have proved critical in turning Singapore into a carbon-credit hub—certainly the most important in the region and perhaps the world. Today, the country is home to more than 100 carbon-trading firms and a robust regulatory framework for how companies can use credits. In the spring of 2023, as the UAE was in the midst of developing Alterra and Singapore was crafting its taxonomy for Asia, the U.S. was immersed in a fight over whether fund managers can legally take climate change into account in their decisionmaking. Then and now, the mainstream U.S. conversation at the intersection of climate and finance is vastly different from the same conversations happening around the world. As other countries innovate, the U.S. government is at best caught in a defensive posture and at worst pulling back. During the Biden years, the Federal Reserve dipped its toes into the Network for Greening the Financial System before promptly pulling out after Donald Trump's election, and the U.S. federal government has abandoned any efforts to craft financial-disclosure rules around climate. To be clear, big U.S. financial firms with operations outside the U.S. will need to comply with this growing segment of climate regulation; the rules will just be drafted somewhere else. It may not worry Wall Street just yet. While cities like London and Singapore have developed global finance hubs, today there's no question that the U.S. is the epicenter. The country has the deepest capital markets and the world's reserve currency. It houses the biggest and most influential global financial firms. And, yet, as sustainable finance grows, its influence has the potential to eat away at the U.S. position. That road will be long and windy as every place faces its own unique challenges. In the U.K., politicians need to explain to voters why the government is spending so much time on sustainable finance in the midst of other challenges. Indeed, some efforts to bolster sustainable finance have stalled or been dropped entirely, presumably with those political questions in mind. In Abu Dhabi, leaders must confront the skepticism in many corners about the ability of a big oil-producing country to deliver on climate. And Singapore faces the consistent challenge that comes from existing in the shadow of China—which also has designs on developing a sustainable-finance sector. Those questions will eventually be resolved, and a new paradigm will emerge. The winners won't just capture economic opportunity; they will help determine whether the world has the financial infrastructure to avoid the worst effects of climate change. This story is supported by a partnership with Outrider Foundation and Journalism Funding Partners. TIME is solely responsible for the content .
NBC News
an hour ago
- NBC News
Israel's Netanyahu expected to push for plan to 'occupy' Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to push to "occupy all of the Gaza Strip" as ceasefire talks with Hamas founder and the hunger crisis in the besieged Palestinian enclave spirals. A bid by Netanyahu to occupy all of Gaza would follow similar calls from members of his far-right government upon whom his fragile coalition relies, and could mark a significant shift in policy since Israel withdrew from the territory in 2005. Officials from Netanyahu's office said in a statement shared with NBC News on Monday night that the Israeli leader had decided to "occupyall of the Gaza Strip, including areas where hostages may be held." The statement was shared in Hebrew and the term used can be translated to mean both "occupy" and "conquer." Netanyahu's office did not immediately respond to a request for clarification on the intended definition, but Israeli media, including The Times of Israel, reported that Netanyahu intended to "fully occupy" the enclave. Israeli media reported that Netanyahu would hold a limited security meeting on Tuesday to discuss the future of Israel's campaign in Gaza. Netanyahu had said Monday he planned to convene the security cabinet this week to "instruct" the Israeli military on how to achieve the three war objectives laid out at the start of Israel's offensive in Gaza: defeating Hamas, seeing the release of hostages who remain held in the enclave and removing the threat of possible future attacks. Asked to confirm if the meeting would take place Tuesday, his office did not respond directly and referred NBC News to his comments Monday. While the Hamas-led attacks of Oct. 7, 2023 that left 1,200 dead and saw 250 taken hostages garnered worldwide sympathy for Israel, the country's actions in the territory have since sparked widespread international outrage. The U.S. remains the biggest supplier of arms to Israel, with American spending on Israel's military operations reaching more than $17.9 billion from Oct. 7 last year to Sept. 30, according to Brown University's Costs of War Project. There has been growing global alarm over Israel's actions in the enclave amid a hunger crisis caused by the offensive and strict restrictions on the entry of aid, marked by mounting deaths from starvation. The 'worst-case scenario of famine ' is unfolding in the Gaza Strip under Israel's assault, the world's leading body on hunger said last week. Meanwhile, most of its residents have been driven from their homes and more than 60,900 killed, including thousands of children, according to local health officials. Nearly 190 people in Gaza, including at least 94 children, have died from malnutrition since the war began, according to the Palestinian health ministry in Gaza. There is mounting opposition to the war among Israelis. Many have long despaired over the fate of of the estimated 20 living hostages remaining in Gaza, and recent protests have expressed outrage over the children dying from malnutrition. Fears for the hostages were also fueled after Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad released imagery in recent days showing visibly gaunt Israeli hostages Evyatar David and Rom Braslavski. Earlier this month, a group representing hundreds of retired Israeli security officials that calls itself the Commanders for Israel's Security's leadership addressed a letter to President Donald Trump calling on him to pressure Israel to end the war. In the letter, which was confirmed to NBC News, the group said it was their professional judgment that Hamas no longer posed a strategic threat — and that it was time to 'end the war, return the hostages' and 'stop the suffering.' While the reoccupation of Gaza is largely unpopular with the Israeli public, it is supported on the far right. Over the weekend, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called for Israel to "conquer" Gaza to and to encourage Palestinians to leave the enclave. Ben-Gvir drew condemnation not only for his comments, but also for leading a group of worshippers in prayer at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, known to Jews as Temple Mount, violating a decades-old agreement allowing Jews to visit to Jerusalem's most sensitive holy site but not to worship there. Ben-Gvir has repeatedly called for Israel to "conquer" Gaza, and called for rebuilding of Israeli settlements there alongside other right-wing ministers, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. Israel captured the Gaza Strip, then occupied by Egypt, after the 1967 war, but withdrew settlers — some of them forcefully — in 2005. In 2006, residents elected Islamist militant and political group Hamas in legislative elections, precipitating clashes with more secular Palestinian faction of Fatah. Hamas seized full control of the enclave in 2007.
Associated Press
an hour ago
- Associated Press
Former Israeli security officials call to end the war in Gaza as Netanyahu hints at a new stage
JERUSALEM (AP) — Former Israeli army and intelligence chiefs called for an end to the war in Gaza as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at further military action and Israel's government plotted its next move in the devastated territory. On the ground in Gaza, health officials reported new deaths Tuesday of Palestinians seeking food at distribution points. The Israeli defense body coordinating aid to Gaza announced a new deal with local merchants to improve aid deliveries as desperation mounts. The former security officials speaking out included those who led Israel's Shin Bet internal security service, Mossad spy agency and the Israeli military. In a roughly three-minute video posted to social media this week, they demanded an end to the war and said the far-right members of the government are holding the country 'hostage' in prolonging the conflict. 'This is leading the state of Israel to the loss of its security and its identity,' Ami Ayalon, former head of Shin Bet, said in the footage. Yoram Cohen, former head of Shin Bet, called Netanyahu's objectives 'a fantasy.' 'If anyone imagines that we can reach every terrorist and every pit and every weapon and in parallel bring our hostages home — I think it is impossible,' he said. Next stage of the war Netanyahu, meanwhile, announced Monday that he would convene his Security Cabinet in the coming days to direct the army on the next stage of the war, hinting that even tougher military action was an option in Gaza. Netanyahu said he remained committed to achieving his war objectives, including defeating Hamas, releasing all hostages and ensuring Gaza never again threatens Israel. Israeli media said the meeting was expected Tuesday, with disagreements between Netanyahu and the army chief, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, on how to proceed. The reports, citing anonymous officials in Netanyahu's office, said the prime minister was pushing the army, which already controls about three quarters of Gaza, to conquer the entire territory, a step that could endanger the hostages, deepen the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and further isolate Israel internationally. Various reports have said Zamir opposes this step and could step down or be pushed out if it is approved. Aid through local merchants Several hundred Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since May while heading toward food distribution sites, airdropped parcels and aid convoys in the Gaza Strip, according to witnesses, local health officials and the United Nations human rights office. The Israeli military says it only has fired warning shots and disputes the toll. The Israeli defense body in charge of coordinating aid to Gaza, called COGAT, wrote on social platform X that there will be a 'gradual and controlled renewal of the entry of goods through the private sector in Gaza.' 'This aims to increase the volume of aid entering the Gaza Strip, while reducing reliance on aid collection by the U.N. and international organizations,' it said Tuesday. A limited number of local merchants were approved for the plan and will sell basic food products, baby food, fruits and vegetables and hygiene supplies through bank transfers, COGAT said. 'Stained with humiliation and blood' Thousands of Palestinians crowded against aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip through the southern Morag corridor Monday attempting to get whatever food they could during a protracted food shortage across the enclave. Mohammed Qassas from Khan Younis in southern Gaza said his children are so hungry that he is forced to storm aid trucks. 'I have young children, how am I supposed to feed them? No one has mercy. This resembles the end of the world,' he said. 'If we fight, we get the food. If we don't fight, we don't get anything.' As the trucks drove away, men climbed onto them, scrambling for any remaining scraps. 'The conditions are very challenging and we are hoping for a system to be in place,' Qassas said. 'Some people go home with some 200 kilograms (441 pounds), and others go home with only one kilogram (35 ounces). It is a mafia-like system.' After relentless efforts to get food from the trucks, it has become a routine for men to be seen coming back carrying flour sacks on their back, as well as carrying wounded and dead bodies from near the aid sites. Yusif Abu Mor from Khan Younis said the trucks' aid system is akin to a death trap. 'This aid is stained with humiliation and blood,' he said, adding that aid seekers run the risk of being killed by shootings or run over by aid trucks surrounded by crowds of hungry Palestinians. Slide toward famine Israel's blockade and military offensive have made it nearly impossible to safely deliver aid, contributing to the territory's slide toward famine nearly 22 months into the war with Hamas. Aid groups say Israel's week-old measures to allow more aid in are far from sufficient. Families of hostages in Gaza fear starvation affects them too, but blame Hamas. As international alarm has mounted, several countries have airdropped aid over Gaza. The U.N. and aid groups call such drops costly and dangerous for residents, and say they deliver far less aid than trucks. ___ Shurafa reported from Deir Al-Balah, Gaza Strip. Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed.
