The UN General Assembly (UNGA) on Wednesday adopted a resolution that reinforces member states’ duties to protect the global climate system by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The resolution calls upon states to comply with the obligations set out by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), creating legal backing to the non-binding advisory opinion issued by the UN high court in July 2025. Pursuant to the UNGA decision, countries now have a legal duty under international law to tackle the climate crisis by taking all possible steps to avoid causing climate change.
Vanuatu, in collaboration with other Pacific island nations, drafted the proposed resolution earlier this year, urging countries to consider the impacts their greenhouse gas emissions have on small nations facing the brunt of the climate crisis. These nations are among those facing the largest burden of climate change, such as extreme weather events, crop failure, and sea level rise, despite their lack of contribution to global warming.
However, following negotiations amongst the states, the text of Vanuatu’s resolution was altered significantly. Notably missing from the adopted draft was the “International Register of Damage,” which would have created the duty to create a “comprehensive and transparent record” of evidence of damage attributable to climate change.
Nevertheless, under this resolution, states may be required to compensate injured nations for any damage they caused in violation of ICJ climate obligations.
In a statement after the vote, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reiterated that those contributing the least to climate change are “paying the largest price” for its effects. He also indicated the need to transition away from fossil fuels for this reason, stating:
The science is clear: fossil fuels are the principle driver of the climate crisis. The path to climate justice runs through a rapid, just and equitable transition away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy.
The resolution’s text also affirms that states need to do their part to keep global temperatures from exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius, a target set out by the Paris Climate Agreement that would require a rapid decline in fossil fuel emissions to achieve.
Despite an overwhelming 141 votes to adopt the resolution, eight countries were in opposition, including three countries included in the list of ten largest fossil fuel emitters globally: the United States, Russia, and Iran, as well as top oil producers such as Saudi Arabia.
Following the resolution’s adoption, Deputy Representative of the United States to the United Nations Tammy Bruce issued a highly critical statement opposing the resolution and challenging its legality. Bruce said that the ICJ’s “unfounded” view that States have a legal duty to prevent global transboundary harm is a legally wrong conclusion and that their indication that “climate change is an unprecedented challenge of civilizational proportions” is a politically alarmist idea.
In the US, the Trump administration has historically been against the notion that climate change is a serious global issue rather than a highly polarizing political motive and has continued to roll back climate protections within the country. Additionally, following Vanuatu’s proposed regulation, the administration pressured the small nation to withdraw its draft due to its potential to “pose a major threat to US industry.”
In spite of the pushback from major emitters, Guterres described the resolution’s adoption as a victory for the planet, emphasizing that this is a win for climate justice and holding states accountable for their actions.
US dispatch: federal grand jury subpoena marks first known criminal probe into gender-affirming care at major New York hospital
India dispatch: Supreme Court rebukes lower courts for branding a woman’s career choices as cruelty, raising questions about how matrimonial law treats working women
‘Forever Barred and Precluded’: Trump’s IRS Settlement and the Architecture of Federal Immunity
From Tokyo to The Hague: How a 1946 Tribunal Continues to Shape the Laws of War
Beaten, Starved, Unbroken: An Interview with Ben Marmarelli, Lawyer to Marwan Barghouti, Palestine’s Nelson Mandela
Blanche v. Lau: Supreme Court to Decide Whether DHS Can Sidestep Deportation Rules for Returning Green Card Holders
Confederate rebels’ voting rights restored under amnesty
On May 22, 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant signed the General Amnesty Act, allowing all but about 500 Southern male voters denied voting rights as a punishment for rebellion under the XIVth Amendment to regain their right to vote and hold office. General amnesty was finally made universal on June 6, 1898.
Sri Lanka constitution ratified
On May 22, 1972, the former British colony of Ceylon ratified a new constitution, becoming the Republic of Sri Lanka.
