Oil and Gas Reliant Timor-Leste Joins Call for Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty

Timor-Leste depends heavily on oil and gas revenue, which represents 70 percent of its gross domestic product.

Timor-Leste President José Ramos-Horta at the National Press Club in Canberra, Wednesday, September 7, 2022. Mr Ramos-Horta is in Australia on a 5 day official visit. AAP Image/Mick Tsikas

The Antigua and Barbuda and Timor-Leste governments have joined a growing bloc of nations proposing a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, supporting the calls to phase out oil, gas, and coal to address climate change.

The countries made the commitment after United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres asked governments to raise their goals at the UN Climate Ambition Summit.