Xie Zhenhua, China’s special representative for climate, South Brazil’s Environment Minister IzabellaTeixeira, South Africa’s Minister of Environmental Affairs Edna Molewa, and Indian Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar issued a joint statement on Tuesday at a press conference in Paris. India is pushing for an “ambitious and just” agreement. Developed countries had agreed to provide about $100 billion by 2020 to help developing countries cope with climate change. The conference is due to end on Friday. “Both leaders emphasised their personal commitment to secure a strong climate change agreement this week and their interest in our countries’ working together to achieve a successful outcome”, it said.
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But in Paris the amount of money richer countries are prepared to pay developing countries to help them deal with global warming, is likely to continue to emendate negotiations at the COP21 Climate Change Summit.
“I can tell you that earlier today, the (US) President placed a telephone call to Prime Minister Modi of India to discuss the ongoing negotiations”, he said.
PM Modi has said climate change is a global problem that has not been caused by India. He had also met his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.
The White House also said that Obama accepted Modi’s condolences for the loss of life in the San Bernardino shootings last week.
Speaking at a session of the Earth to Paris dialogue organized by the UN Foundation, Kerry said that after he became Secretary of State, his first objective was to walk the talk on climate change, and started by approaching China to talk about what they can do.
“We had a very constructive meeting, a very positive meeting”.
Meanwhile, rich nations are insisting that developing giants work harder to tackle their greenhouse gases, noting that much of the world’s emissions come from their fast-growing economies.
“We have people who still deny this: Members of the flat earth society who seem to believe that the ocean rise won’t be a problem because the water will just spill over the edge”, Kerry said to appreciative laughter from the audience that included U.N. Foundation founder Ted Turner.
There is a growing concern that without a working agreement on finance, the most vulnerable countries will be hit the hardest by the effects of climate change.
“We’ve been absorbing the punches and we will continue to receive these punches as the planet continues to warm”.
Novozymes CEO, Peder Holk Nielsen, was invited to speak at the world climate discussions about how their technology can make a difference in even simple things like doing laundry.
US Secretary of State John Kerry speaks at the “Earth to Paris” event, at the Petit Palais in Paris, France, December 7, 2015.
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“Those of us who have been watching these for a long time think there has been a spirit of cooperation”, Greenpeace political advisor Ruth Davis told journalists.
