The government is now appointing a special ambassador to focus on issues at the intersection of security and climate.
Erik Widman will be the new ambassador for climate and security following a decision by the government. The idea is that he will raise the issue of the connection between the effects of the climate crisis and an increased risk of conflicts.
– We are increasingly seeing how climate issues spill over into security policy and how armed conflicts are triggered by climate problems. Appointing an ambassador for the issue is a way to shed more light on the issue, says Foreign Minister Ann Linde (S) in connection.
Erik Widman has previously been head of the Asia Unit at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the then Security Policy Unit. He did not hesitate for a second when he received the offer of the assignment.
“These issues have come to the fore, not least when we see how both climate change and Russian aggression against Ukraine affect global food supply,” he says.
The connection between climate change and conflicts has received increasing attention internationally, including within the UN. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) also has a Ministerial Declaration mandating the organization to work on climate and security.
– We have many good research institutes that are world leaders in climate and security policy, including the Stockholm hub on environmental climate and security. Their knowledge and analyzes need to reach out and become better known, that is one of the things I will work for, says Erik Widman.
That the government would appoint an ambassador for climate and security was announced as early as February when Ann Linde presented the foreign declaration.