Saturday March 27th 2021
Putin and Xi also invited
Biden drums to the online climate summit
Donald Trump thought man-made climate change was nonsense, and under his administration the United States withdrew from the Paris climate agreement. Meanwhile, a new wind is blowing in the White House. With an online summit, President Biden wants to increase international pressure to act in a “climate emergency”.
US President Joe Biden wants to advance efforts to protect the climate and has also invited the presidents from Russia and China to an online summit. The White House announced that Biden had issued invitations to a total of 40 top international politicians for the online event on April 22nd and 23rd. In addition to Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin and China’s head of state and party Xi Jinping, these include German Chancellor Angela Merkel and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The event is to be broadcast live on the Internet.
According to the White House, the summit is intended to underline the urgency of stronger measures for climate protection and their economic benefits. Before that, the US would announce “an ambitious emissions target” for 2030 as a new contribution to the Paris climate agreement. Biden urged other heads of state and government to use the online meeting to make increased contributions as well.
The next UN climate conference will take place in November in Glasgow, Scotland. Shortly after taking office in January, Biden announced that he would convene a climate summit on April 22, the so-called Earth Day. Under his predecessor Donald Trump, who repeatedly expressed doubts about climate change, the US withdrew from the Paris climate agreement. On the day of his swearing in, Biden ordered his return.
White House speaks of “climate emergency”
The new president reiterated that the US would play a leading role in implementing the agreement. Unlike the Republican Trump, the Democrat Biden has declared climate protection to be one of his most important goals – the White House speaks of a “climate emergency”. Shortly after taking office, Biden appointed former Secretary of State John Kerry as special envoy to the climate, a member of the National Security Council in this capacity. Last week, Kerry called for more international ambition in climate protection at an online congress organized by the federal government.
According to the White House, the summit is intended to revitalize a forum for 17 major economies, which together are responsible for around 80 percent of global emissions. Biden has also invited heads of state and government who are particularly committed to climate protection or whose countries are particularly affected by climate change.
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