The world is facing its biggest energy crisis in ⁠history due to disruptions that resulted from the US-Israeli attacks on Iran, reaffirmed International Energy Agency (IEA) head Fatih Birol on Thursday.

"The ⁠oil markets and ⁠gas markets are ⁠going through big difficulties. When I ⁠looked ‌last time, the oil price ‌was over US$120, which is putting ⁠a lot of pressure on many countries," he said at ‌an IEA conference on energy transition in Paris.

"Our world is facing a major energy and economic challenge," said Birol, adding that his agency, which advises its member countries on energy policy, was monitoring the situation.

Joining the chorus of warnings was the president-designate of the COP31 climate conference Murat Kurum, who said the global energy crisis has underscored the need for the world economy to transform and "accelerate the transition to clean energy".

"The world is facing the biggest energy crisis in its history today," he told the IEA meeting on energy transition.

"We now know clearly that the global economy must transform its energy paradigm," said Kurum, who is also Turkiye's climate minister.

"And the most critical step is to accelerate the transition to clean energy," he added.

The meeting in Paris was being in held as part of preparations for the UN's COP31 climate summit in Antalya, Turkiye. (AFP & Reuters)



Edited by Thomas McAlinden