The UN General Assembly is preparing to vote on a resolution that could have far reaching consequences for emitters and climate change.

In 2023, the Republic of Vanuatu led a group calling for the UN to seek an International Court of Justice (ICJ) ‘advisory opinion’ on the legal obligations countries all over the world have under international law when it comes to climate action. This core group of states included Vanuatu, Antigua and Barbuda, Costa Rica, Sierra Leone, Angola, Germany, Mozambique, Liechtenstein, Samoa, Federated States of Micronesia, Bangladesh, Morocco, Singapore, Uganda, New Zealand, Vietnam, Romania and Portugal.

The advisory opinion was received in 2025 and declared that states must act now to avoid climate catastrophe under international law. Although non-binding, the opinion should reinforce climate laws and policies.

Now, in early May 2026, Vanuatu has announced a resolution from the UN General Assembly as a follow-up to the ICJ's opinion.

The draft resolution reiterates the findings of the ICJ in its opinion, and urges countries to limit global warming to 1.5C by:

Tripling renewable energy capacity
Scaling up energy efficiency
Accelerating a just phase-out of fossil fuels
Addressing inefficient fossil fuel subsidies

The UN General Assembly is expected to vote on the resolution by 20 May.

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