Amazon wildfires represent an international crisis: Macron

(Paris) – French President Emmanuel Macron said wildfires in the Amazon were an “international crisis” and called on this weekend´s G7 to address the issue.

“Our house is burning. Literally. The Amazon rainforest — the lungs which produces 20 percent of our planet´s oxygen — is on fire. It is an international crisis. Members of the G7 Summit, let´s discuss this emergency first order in two days!” Macron said on Twitter.

The French president, who tweeted in French and English, is the latest international figure to raise the alarm over the raging wildfires in the Amazon.

Earlier, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he was “deeply concerned” by the wildfires that have blanketed several Brazilian cities in thick smoke.

“In the midst of the global climate crisis, we cannot afford more damage to a major source of oxygen and biodiversity,” he said on Twitter.

“The Amazon must be protected.”