Jakarta (ANTARA) - Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi has called for concrete global action to deal with sea level rise triggered by climate change by sharing the burden fairly.

According to her, the impact of sea level rise could potentially be experienced by every country in the world—even people living far inland—and worsen food and economic vulnerability.

"Keeping the increase in the Earth's temperature below 1.5 degrees Celsius is a 'non-negotiable' price, and to achieve it requires fair burden sharing, not burden shifting," Marsudi said.

She made the remarks during the High-Level Meeting on Sea Level Rise, held on the sidelines of the 79th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday local time.

Therefore, efforts to strengthen international cooperation to deal with rising sea levels should be focused on increasing capacity, technical assistance, and collective steps to mobilize technological resources and funding that can be accessed by all countries, she said.

She also emphasized that the world's political will in dealing with the sea level rise must be strengthened as the phenomenon could cause the loss of state territory and disrupt people's lives.

Marsudi further highlighted Indonesia's initiative to host the first Archipelagic and Small Island States (AIS) Forum Summit last October in Bali as an effort to encourage international collaboration and explore innovative funding mechanisms for these countries.

She said that a special global agenda is needed to address the issue of sea level rise and emphasized the importance of efforts to strengthen the international legal framework that could protect the sovereignty of countries and their populations.

The advancement of science and data should also be encouraged to support more effective decision-making and policies, she said.

"Sea level rise is an alarm for the world. Do not delay, act now to protect millions of lives and future generations," the minister added.

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Translator: Nabil Ihsan, Yashinta Difa
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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