Secretary of State John F. Kerry said Tuesday he will integrate climate change analysis and its national security implications into all future foreign policy planning.<\/p>\n
In a speech delivered at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, home to the world\u2019s largest naval base and already experiencing flooding linked to climate change, Kerry called climate change a threat to national security.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have to prepare ourselves for the potential social and political consequences that stem from crop failures, water shortages, famine and outbreaks of epidemic disease,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd we have to heighten our national security readiness to deal with the possible destruction of vital infrastructure and the mass movement of refugees \u2014 particularly in parts of the world that already provide fertile ground for violent extremism and terror.<\/p>\n
\u201cLong story short, climate change isn\u2019t just about Bambi. It\u2019s about us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kerry said he would convene a task force of senior government officials and outside experts to determine how to make climate change predictions a part of foreign policy planning.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we can better identify the red flags of risk around the world, we can better target our diplomacy and development assistance to enable those nations to become more resilient and more secure \u2014 and less likely to devolve into a full-fledged war and humanitarian crisis,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Embassies could use climate change analysis to help host countries find ways to deter disaster, Kerry said,\u201cbefore it evolves into deep grievances that help fuel conflicts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kerry noted that he was speaking in Hampton Roads, where the land the city is built on is sinking as sea levels are rising twice as fast as the world\u2019s average. He said political opponents who doubt the science of climate change are posing a threat to everyone.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe science tells us unequivocally, those who continue to make climate change a political fight put us all at risk,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd we cannot sit idly by and allow them to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kerry called climate change more than a threat to the habitats of butterflies and polar bears. He said it has a direct impact on military readiness.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf our military vehicles can\u2019t go anywhere because they\u2019re up to their axles in water and all the roads leading into and out of base are flooded, it affects our military readiness,\u201d he said. \u201cSimilarly, if the high risk of wildfires prevents our troops from training with live ammunition, it affects our military readiness.\u201d<\/p>\n
Citing real life examples, Kerry said drought in Nigeria and the government\u2019s inability to cope gave an opening to Boko Haram militants who kidnapped schoolgirls and killed teachers. He also said drought in Syria caused a mass migration from farms to cities, intensifying political unrest when the civil war started.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not suggesting that climate change was the primary reason for the crisis in Syria,\u201d he said. \u201cObviously, it wasn\u2019t. .\u2009.\u2009. But the drought that devastated communities across the country exacerbated the instability on the ground, and made a bad situation worse.\u201d<\/p>\n