The following is a transcript of opening remarks delivered by UN Secretary-General António Guterres at his final press conference at COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, on 13 November 2026.

Ladies and gentlemen of the media, good afternoon.

Let me begin by thanking our Turkish hosts for their hospitality and warm welcome. 

Türkiye is hosting one of the biggest COPs ever – and certainly the largest UN conference of the year. 

It is remarkable to feel the energy, enthusiasm and commitment of tens of thousands of people from every corner of the world.  

It is yet another reminder of how only the UN has the capacity to bring so many people and entities together to deal with the biggest challenges of our time.

This is my final COP as Secretary-General – and this is my final event here in Antalya, so allow me to step back for a moment.

For nearly ten years as Secretary-General, I have tried to speak the truth about climate change.

Sometimes that truth has been uncomfortable.

Sometimes it has been unwelcome.

But my responsibility has never been to make the facts more convenient.

It has been to tell the truth rooted in the science, and to be especially clear when the truth is hard.

Facts are facts.

And the fact is climate change does not stay in its lane.

It drives hunger and displacement around the world.

It wipes out development gains built over decades.

It pushes countries deeper into debt.

It aggravates competition for land and water.

It fuels instability.

And, increasingly, it threatens the very existence of communities and countries.

For all these reasons, I have never viewed climate action as just one of many other issues.

Climate action is central to every aspect of the work of the United Nations.

You cannot build peace on a burning planet.

You cannot eradicate poverty when climate disasters keep throwing people back into it.

You cannot promise young people a better future while destroying the natural systems on which that future depends.

And you cannot speak seriously about justice when those who did least to cause the crisis suffer first and worst.

And the injustice runs even deeper.

Because we know what is happening.

We know what is causing it.

And we know what we must do.

Fossil fuels are driving the climate crisis.

There is no credible path to a safe climate without moving away from them.

Here in Antalya, I have been crystal clear: We need an accelerated transition away from fossil fuels that is just, orderly and equitable.

The climate demands it – but so do economics and security.

Fossil-fuel dependence leaves countries exposed to price shocks, geopolitical turmoil and instability.

Changing suppliers does not solve the problem. Reducing dependence does.

That means massively expanding clean energy, grids, storage, efficiency and clean electrification, while ensuring that clean-energy growth actually drives down fossil-fuel production, use and emissions.

That has been my message here. 

And the science has delivered another hard truth that makes all this even more imperative.

An overshoot of 1.5 degrees is now inevitable.

And our responsibility is to keep it as small as possible, for as short a time as possible, and bring temperatures back below 1.5 degrees as quickly as we can.

But that requires immediate and drastic emissions cuts, on the order of 6 per cent every year over the next few years.

But on the basis of current commitments of national determined contributions, the countries’ climate plans, we are heading for an overshoot as far as the eye can see – with temperatures above 2.5 degrees by the end of the century.

And that is a recipe for catastrophe.

Even a limited, temporary overshoot will intensify the devastating impacts we are already seeing.

And that makes climate justice even more urgent.

Developing countries, particularly the most vulnerable, will need far greater support for adaptation and for loss and damage.

And developed countries must deliver the finance they have promised at recent COPs.

And let us be clear about the scale of the gap: even tripling adaptation finance would meet less than 30 per cent of what is needed.

But I remain hopeful. I’ve also seen something extraordinary over these ten years.

Renewable energy has moved from the margins to the mainstream.

The economics have changed.

The technology has advanced.

A cleaner, safer and more secure energy future is in our hands.

The question is whether we have the courage and speed to reach for it.

The distance between what the science demands and what politics delivers remains dangerously wide.

The COP process must evolve to help close that gap.

Some interesting initiatives were put on the table here: The COP30 presidency roadmaps on transitioning away from fossil fuels and on deforestation;

The push for electrification that I emphasized must be clean;

The global commitment to zero waste;

Moving forward on global grid acceleration;

And speeding up implementation of our early warnings initiative for all.

But the central question is in the hands of member states, particularly the big emitters.

They must recognize the need for an immediate and drastic reduction in emissions to keep the 1.5 goal still possible by the end of the century.   

Negotiations remain essential.

And what matters most is whether decisions drive faster action and make a difference in people’s lives.

And we must confront the disproportionate influence of the fossil fuel lobby.

The future of our planet cannot be negotiated on the terms of those profiting from its destruction.

And all that leads to perhaps the most important truth of all. 

No country can protect itself from climate change alone.

We share one planet – and whether we like it or not, we share one fate.

That is also why the United Nations has strengthened its support for implementation — from early warnings to grids, methane and critical minerals and through our Climate Promise Forward.

Climate action must remain central to the work of the United Nations.

Because this is about peace.

It’s about development.

It’s about human rights and justice.

And ultimately, it’s about whether international cooperation can still rise to the challenges that no country can solve by itself.

I believe it can and it must.

So my message as I leave Antalya is simple:

Face the facts. Follow the science.  

Choose the future. And never give up.

Thank you.