IN BRIEF
- The United Nations resolution wants to deem the failure to limit fossil fuel production as an "internationally wrongful act".
- A group of students from the Pacific instigated and advocated for the advisory opinion.
Australia has voted in favour of a landmark United Nations resolution, spearheaded by its Pacific island neighbours, urging action on climate change.
The 193-member global body endorsed an advisory opinion provided by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Wednesday, which notably warns that the failure to curb fossil fuel production could constitute an "internationally wrongful act".
The hard-fought legal opinion from the world's top court, delivered in July 2025, was first conceived by a group of Pacific students.
The Pacific island nation of Vanuatu was the first to act in support of the opinion.
The climate-vulnerable island nation, supported by its Pacific allies, was also the first to sponsor the UN General Assembly resolution.
The resolution passed with 141 votes in favour, eight against and 28 abstentions.
Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change director Vishal Prasad is one of the students who instigated the ICJ advisory opinion.
"This must be a turning point in accountability for damaging the climate," he said.
"Communities on the frontlines, like in the Pacific, have been waiting far too long and continue to pay too high a price for the actions of others."
Amanda McKenzie, chief executive of the Australia-based Climate Council, said the ruling exposes the federal government's stance on fossil fuel exports.
"While the government is ramping up renewable power, it is still giving fossil fuel giants a free ride," she said.
"Continuing to wave through massive new coal and gas projects puts our kids' future at risk and is now clearly against international law."
Australia voted in favour of the resolution.
The nation remains a major exporter of coal and gas, despite pursuing significant domestic emissions cuts and ambitious renewables targets.
Other big fossil fuel producers, including the United States, Russia, Iran and Saudi Arabia, opposed the measure.
Australia was not among the resolution's 69 co-sponsors leading into the vote. Australia and New Zealand were the only Pacific nations missing from the list.
Australia holds a key president of negotiations role heading into the next Conference of the Parties climate change talks to be held in Türkiye, with Fiji and Tuvalu set to hold official pre-event meetings.
Low-lying Tuvalu is expected to lose 90 per cent of its land to the ocean by the end of the century due to sea level rise.
The UN General Assembly resolution formally reaffirms the ICJ's findings and urges governments to align policies with limiting global warming to 1.5C.
It also urges nations in violation to provide reparation for damage and calls for the regulation of fossil fuel companies.
For the latest from SBS News, download our app and subscribe to our newsletter.
