Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry celebrated the 79th anniversary of the D-Day invasion of Normandy by likening the historic event that resulted in the deaths of thousands of American and allied service members, and the eventual victory over the Nazi regime, to the fight against climate change.
According to a report by Recharge, Kerry made the comparison in Norway on Tuesday during an appearance at a shipping exhibition in which he was the keynote speaker.
‘Today is June 6th. D-Day. One of the most singularly important moments of history,’ Kerry told those in attendance. ‘A moment that calls to mind every single thing that defined the past half of the 20th century and beginning of the 21st century.’
‘They were fighting for a set of values I would say to you are just as important today as they were then. They put their lives on the line to fight against fascism, tyranny and misinformation and the savage slaughter of innocent lives,’ he said.
‘Make no mistake, just as that was a fight for the future as much as anything we have ever faced, what we are seeing now is the same,’ he later added.
According to the report, Kerry argued that failure to address climate change could lead to greater consequences than what the world faced in 1944 when then-German leader Adolf Hitler still controlled much of Europe.
‘What is also clear right now is we can also win this fight, but it requires the same level of innovation and mobilization that was required back then by those in the greatest generation,’ he said. ‘Today’s threat comes from all of us. It comes from the result of the things we do or avoid doing.’
The report said that Kerry faulted modern generations for not acting decisively to address climate change, something he argued the generation who took on the Axis powers in World War II ‘rose to the occasion’ to do.
‘This is the fight of our times. A fight against greed, selfishness, disinformation and outright lies and a fight for that cleaner, healthier and more prosperous and safer world,’ he added.
Kerry recently came under fire for other controversial remarks he made earlier last month when he stated that ‘net-zero’ energy goals were impossible without addressing greenhouse gas emissions from the agriculture sector. He said the industry creates 33% of the world’s total carbon emissions and argued that reducing those emissions must be ‘front and center’ in the quest to defeat global warming.
He added that food emissions alone are projected to cause an additional half degree of warming by 2050, noting that the global population is increasing and recently surpassed eight billion people.
A group of Republican lawmakers later called on President Biden to disavow Kerry’s comments, referring to them as ‘deeply offensive,’ and ‘a blatant slap in the face to the hardworking individuals that spend their lives sustainably producing our world’s food, fuel, and fiber.’
Fox News’ Thomas Catenacci contributed to this report.