The climate crisis remains one of the most imminent threats to global security and humanity which requires a full concerted effort from all sectors to radically lower our greenhouse gas emissions and ensure a sustainable future. Nonetheless, the military sectors in Europe seem to not be part of this collective effort.
The carbon footprint of the military sectors is a largely unexplored area, primarily linked to the lack of transparency and accountability regarding the emissions of the military and defence industry.
This new study illustrates that not only military spending is swallowing up resources that could and should be used to tackle climate change, invest in global justice, and to promote peaceful conflict resolution and disarmament, but that the military technology industry in itself is significantly contributing to the climate emergency.
The report was commissioned by The Left group in the European Parliament and undertaken by the Conflict and Environment Observatory and Scientists for Global Responsibility. This report was written and researched by Dr Stuart Parkinson, Executive Director at SGR and Linsey Cottrell, Environmental Policy Officer at CEOBS.