Brussels, 18 September 2025 – At today’s ENVI Council meeting, EU environment ministers discussed only a weak statement of intent on the 2040 climate target, falling short of making clear and ambitious commitments to the international community under the Paris Agreement.
This comes despite a broad coalition of European businesses, major city networks, regional governments and civil society organisations recently urging the EU to adopt a science-based 2040 target of at least a 90% emissions cut, free of loopholes, together with an ambitious NDC. Such clarity would provide the predictability that European regions and industries need to accelerate the transition.
Sven Harmeling, Head of Climate at Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe, said:
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European Climate Law and the 2040 target
Discussions were limited to a policy exchange on proposed amendments to the European Climate Law, with the unresolved 2040 target at its core. This follows the postponement of a formal decision on the target itself, after several Member States insisted on deferring the matter to the European Council in October. Such repeated delays are deeply concerning: rather than advancing a coherent climate pathway, Ministers once again extended the timeline, undermining both predictability and the EU’s credibility in international climate diplomacy.
Impact on the NDC
Without agreement on the 2040 target, the EU cannot complete its NDC. Both the European Commission and many Member States underlined today that the 2035 milestone depends on a 2040 decision.
Instead of a formal submission, Ministers endorsed only a statement of intent, first tabled by the Danish Presidency on 12 September. This text provides an indicative signal of 2035 emission reductions to the international community, including at the UN Climate Ambition Summit on 24 September, but falls short of a full NDC. As a consequence, the EU will miss the UNFCCC deadline of 29 September.
Final adoption of both the 2040 target and the EU’s NDC is foreseen in October ahead of UNFCCC COP30, yet this will come only after the official deadline and risks further undermining the EU’s climate credibility on the global stage.
Further readings
Enabling a 2040 climate-neutral EU
ENDS
For more information and media requests:
Tomas Spragg Nilsson, tomas.spraggnilsson@caneurope.org, +46 707 65 63 92