Dear Members of the United Nations, 

As a result of final-hour demands made by the U.S. government during negotiation of the 1997 Kyoto treaty, military greenhouse gas emissions were exempted from climate negotiations. That tradition has continued.

The 2015 Paris Agreement left cutting military greenhouse gas emissions to the discretion of individual nations.

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change obliges signatories to publish annual greenhouse gas emissions, but military emissions reporting is voluntary and often not included.

NATO has acknowledged the problem but not created any specific requirements to address it.

There is no reasonable basis for this gaping loophole. War and war preparations are major greenhouse gas emitters. In fact, world militaries are such egregious polluters that it will be impossible to meet any crucial benchmarks for climate change solutions without drastically cutting military carbon output in the immediate future. All greenhouse gas emissions need to be included in mandatory greenhouse gas emission reduction standards. There must be no more exceptions for military pollution – our planet and its people depend on it.

We ask members of the UN to set strict greenhouse gas emissions limits that make no exception for militarism, include transparent reporting requirements and independent verification, and do not rely on schemes to "offset" emissions. Greenhouse gas emissions from a country’s overseas military bases must be fully reported and charged to that country, not the country where the base is located. The UN has the power to engender a peaceful and sustainable future on this planet – but only if these measures are enacted.

Sincerely,