In an opinion adopted at its September plenary, the EESC urged the Council and Parliament to seal the 90% target before COP30 in Brazil, warning that Europe risks losing credibility if it drags its feet.

Teppo Säkkinen, rapporteur for the opinion, said: 'As the fastest warming continent, decisive global climate action is in Europe’s own interest. If we want China, India and others to raise their ambition, we must show that we are serious ourselves.'

EU enlargement should be factored into the climate target, as by 2040 the EU is likely to have new members. The reconstruction of Ukraine could help achieve these goals, Mr Säkkinen said. 'Supporting climate action in Ukraine, Moldova and the Western Balkans will ease their path to EU membership and directly contribute to EU climate targets.'

The EESC recommends going beyond the Commission’s draft to include international credits from candidate countries starting in 2031. Other proposed amendments include:

• Ensuring the high quality of international credits: Any credits must be of high integrity, and should be excluded from use in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS). Reducing emissions in the EU should be the main priority of climate action.
• Exporting clean technologies: Adding exports of clean technologies to the law’s economic objectives and establishing a Clean Industrial Scoreboard to track jobs, innovation and Europe’s place in the global green economy.
• Food security and energy poverty: Inserting explicit requirements into the Climate Law to safeguard food production and reduce energy poverty to sustain rural communities and bring down power and heating bills for homes.

The Committee calls for broad stakeholder dialogue to shape the policies supporting the 2040 target: 'The transition must be grounded in real action to keep everyone on board from entrepreneurs to workers, farmers and families, or it won’t succeed.'

Beyond climate goals, the opinion links decarbonisation to defence, urging investment in dual-use innovations like decentralised clean power for military logistics and low-carbon materials for equipment and construction. Reducing fossil fuel dependency is also a matter of European security.

The opinion also applied the Youth Test, keeping the next generation central to Europe’s climate strategy, as climate action will shape young Europeans’ future quality of life. (ks/fb)