Australia’s ‘immoral’ coalmine decision akin to drowning Pacific neighbours, Tuvalu climate minister declares

Tuvalu’s climate minister says Australia’s decision to approve three coalmine expansions calls into question the country’s claim to be a “member of the Pacific family” and undermines the Australian case to co-host the 2026 UN climate summit with island nations.Dr Maina Talia said last week’s mine approvals, which analysts say could generate more than 1.3bn tonnes of carbon dioxide across their lifetime once the coal is shipped and burned overseas, was “a direct threat to our collective future”.“I have made my view on new coal projects very clear at last month’s Pacific Islands Forum: fossil fuels are killing us, all of us. It is therefore immoral and unacceptable to any country to open new fossil fuel projects, as Australia has recently done with the three coalmine expansion projects it has just approved,” Talia told Guardian Australia.Activists board coal train as Albanese government approves three coalmine expansions – video“This is a matter of survival…