The Kremlin said on Wednesday (October 20) that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not fly to Scotland to participate in the talks that will begin at the end of this month, damaging hopes for a breakthrough international agreement on climate change.
Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said he would participate remotely, but the absence of the leader of the world’s fourth-largest greenhouse gas emitter is the latest setback. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are not. Determine if you will attend.
The United Kingdom, which hosted the 26th United Nations Conference of the Parties to Climate Change (COP26) in Glasgow from October 31 to November 12, is seeking support from major powers to develop a more radical plan to combat global warming.
The Kremlin had previously announced that out of concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic, Putin would not personally attend the G20 summit in Rome this month.
“Unfortunately, he will not fly to Glasgow either,” Peskov told reporters that other Russian representatives will go.
Peskov said: “We need to determine when (Putin) can speak via video conference.” “The issues that will be discussed in Glasgow now constitute one of our foreign policy priorities.”
Russia’s warming rate is 2.8 times the global average. The melting of Siberian permafrost covers 65% of Russia’s land area and releases a large amount of greenhouse gases.
Putin said last week that Russia will strive to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. He said that hydrogen, ammonia and natural gas may play a greater role in the energy structure in the next few years, and Russia is ready to change dialogue on climate issues.
Prior to the Kremlin announcement, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told investors on Tuesday that the attendance of COP26 will be large. “It looks like a lot of people will be able to come in person,” he said.
