Nations who fail to curb fossil fuels could be ordered to pay reparations, top UN court rules
Landmark opinion says those that fail to prevent climate harm could be liable for compensation and restitution

Isabella Kaminski in The Hague
Wed 23 Jul 2025 15.09 EDT

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The world’s top greenhouse gas emitters denied they had any obligations beyond the UN framework convention on climate change (UNFCCC) and the 2015 Paris agreement. The court resoundingly rejected that argument, saying a range of other treaties applied, including the UN convention on the law of the sea, the Vienna convention for the protection of the ozone layer, the Montreal protocol, the convention on biological diversity and the UN convention to combat desertification.

Customary international law also applied, it said, including principles of sustainable development, common but differentiated responsibilities, equity, intergenerational equity and the precautionary principle. States also had a duty to work together to protect the climate, the court said, because uncoordinated action “may not lead to a meaningful result”.

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The ICJ took aim at countries that are not part of climate change treaties, saying they still had to show that their climate policies and practices were consistent with other parts of international law. Donald Trump signed an order earlier this year to withdraw the US from the Paris agreement for the second time, and other rightwing leaders have threatened to do so as well.

“As always, President Trump and the entire administration is committed to putting America first and prioritising the interests of everyday Americans,” White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers told Reuters in response to the opinion.

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