Australia understands the dangers of global warming and the urgency of climate action as much as any other country, Anthony Albanese has said in a keynote speech shortly before the United Nations general assembly.

Speaking at the opening of the Climate Week event at the UN in New York on Monday, the prime minister said Australians had experienced the impact of climate breakdown up close with a series of disastrous bushfires and floods in the past decades.

People had faced up to the adversity, he said, but now it was the turn of politicians to match their “bravery” and take the strong action needed to try to tackle the problem.

“We need to come together, to meet the problem head on,” he told the assembly.

“There’s no avoiding the scale of our responsibility – or the cost of inaction.”

Australia understood the important role it must play and the need to back
“something positive” and to move forward and “build a better future for the next generation”.

His government had set an “ambitious but achievable” target to reduce emissions by 62-70% on 2005 levels by 2035 and, with a mixture of renewable power backed by gas, Australia “will get there” he said.

“We are now a leader in home battery installation, with Australians installing 10,000 batteries each week – more than half a million in the past year.”

“In Australia, spring has arrived,” Albanese said. “With a record-breaking El Niño forecast, Australia and the Pacific nations are preparing for a potential summer of extreme heat, bushfires and floods.”

Last year, a collection of Pacific nations came together to create the Pacific Resilience Facility, a regional climate-financing mechanism. Australia has contributed A$100m towards the fund and another A$350m to further support climate resilient infrastructure in the Pacific.

“It is also a promise to our Pacific family that they will not face the climate crisis alone,” Albanese said. “With Australia’s backing, Palau’s first large-scale solar and battery project is on track to supply more than 20% of its energy needs.”

Australia’s firefighters have stepped up to respond to fires and floods in countries much further away, such as the US, Canada and France. Albanese called these firefighters “an international fraternity of bravery”.

While Australia is exporting knowledge and finance to support other parts of the world dealing with the climate emergency, the country also continues to fuel the crisis with its continued reliance on natural gas.

“Our 2035 target is to reduce emissions by 62-70% on 2005 levels. It is ambitious. But achievable. Australia’s abundant renewable potential firmed by gas will get us there,” Albanese said.

While Australia’s domestic demand for natural gas has decreased, the country is one of the largest exporters of liquefied natural gas, exports continuing to increase over the past year.