"UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations chief warned Monday that the world is failing to address the “existential threat” from global warning and announced that he will convene a “Climate Action Summit” in September to accelerate an urgent response to the climate crisis.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the “non-negotiable” price of entry to the summit for leaders from governments, business, cities and regions, civil society and finance, will be “new, credible climate action to accelerate the pace of change.”

“No exceptions. No compromises,” he told a year-end news conference. “There will be no room for back-sliders, green-washers, blame-shifters or repackaging of announcements of previous years.”

Guterres said the goal of the 2015 Paris climate agreement of capping global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) “is gasping for breath” and “will soon disappear” as the gap between actual greenhouse gas emissions and the amount allowing the target to be met keeps growing."

Edith M. Lederer and Frank Jordans report for the Associated Press December 19, 2022. [2]