Compensation Pledges Could Open a Door Some Countries Would Rather Keep Shut

A commitment by Scotland has prompted other countries to follow suit with more cash. That will raise the pressure on big countries like the United States.

...Rich nations, which have emitted half of all heat-trapping gases since 1850, have worried that compensating poorer countries for climate disasters already underway could open them to unlimited liability. But on Monday, President Emmanuel Macron of France said Europe was already helping poorer countries, and that other Western nations needed to do more. "Europeans are paying," he said. "We are the only ones paying."

"Pressure must be put on rich non-European countries, telling them, 'You have to pay your fair share,'" he said, in a not-too-veiled reference to the Americans. John Kerry, President Biden's climate envoy, has agreed to discuss the idea of financing for loss and damage at the climate conference, but the United States has not agreed to a new fund.

The new pledges come as African leaders on Tuesday emphasized that their countries could not afford the cost of adapting to climate change or mitigating the disasters that it fuels...

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/11/08/climate/cop27-climate-summit?smid=em-share