Australia’s PM Defends Climate Stance Amid Hundreds of Bushfires

Australia’s PM Defends Climate Stance Amid Hundreds of Bushfires
Prime Minister Scott Morrison talks to the media at a press conference in Melbourne, Australia, on Dec. 12, 2019. Photo by Daniel Pockett/Getty Images
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Australia’s prime minister defended his government’s climate policy on Dec. 23, as authorities warned that the wildfires ravaging the country’s most populous state could burn for months.

Responding to criticism that his government has not taken enough action on climate change, Morrison rejected calls to downsize Australia’s coal industry. Australia is the world’s largest exporter of coal and liquefied natural gas.