中办印发关于做好国家勋章和国家荣誉称号提名评选工作的通知
习近平:加强和改进人民政协工作 全面发展协商民主
推进国安机关工作高质量发展,持之以恒抓好作风建设

UN chief hails U.S. return to Paris Agreement, calls for climate action

发布时间:2021-02-21  来源:Xinhua  字体大小[ ]

"Today is a day of hope, as the United States officially rejoins the Paris Agreement. This is good news for the United States, and for the world," says UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 19 -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday hailed the re-entry of the United States into the Paris Agreement on climate change and called for global action to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.

 

"Today is a day of hope, as the United States officially rejoins the Paris Agreement. This is good news for the United States, and for the world," Guterres told a virtual event to mark the U.S. re-entry.

"For the past four years, the absence of a key player created a gap in the Paris Agreement, a missing link that weakened the whole. So today, as we mark the United States re-entry into this treaty, we also recognize its restoration, in its entirety, as its creators intended," he said. "Welcome back."

The United States signed the Paris Agreement on April 22, 2016, and expressed its consent to be bound by the agreement by acceptance on Sept. 3, 2016. Donald Trump, shortly after taking office as U.S. president, announced in June 2017 that his country would cease all participation in the agreement. The U.S. withdrawal officially took effect on Nov. 4, 2020.

On his first day in the White House, President Joe Biden signed a new instrument of acceptance, which was deposited with the UN secretary-general on the same day, enabling the U.S. re-entry on Feb. 19, 2021, in accordance with provisions of the Paris Agreement.

Guterres on Friday called for U.S. and global action to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.

The Paris Agreement is a historic achievement. But the commitments made so far are not enough. And even those commitments made in Paris are not being met, said Guterres.

The six years since 2015, when the Paris Agreement was negotiated, have been the six hottest years on record. Carbon dioxide levels are at record highs. Fires, floods and other extreme weather events are getting worse, in every region, he said. "If we don't change course, we could face a catastrophic temperature rise of more than 3 degrees this century."

This year is pivotal for global climate action, and the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland, in November will be a make-or-break occasion. Governments will take decisions that will determine the future of people and the planet, he said.

The United States, together with all members of the Group of 20 largest economies in the world, has a decisive role in delivering three main objectives: the long-term vision, the decade of transformation, and urgent climate action now, he said.

A central objective for the United Nations this year is to create a truly global coalition for net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, he said.

He asked the United States to formally join this coalition very soon, as pledged by President Biden, and will present its concrete plan to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

In the past year, countries representing 70 percent of the world economy and 65 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions committed to net-zero emissions, he noted.

He asked all governments to present more ambitious, concrete, and credible Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) for the next 10 years, before the Glasgow conference in November.

Guterres commended all U.S. states, cities, businesses and financial institutions that have shown impressive leadership since 2015 by committing to the goals of the Paris Agreement despite the Trump administration's inaction and counterproductive actions.

"We rely on the United States to build on this with an ambitious and credible Nationally Determined Contribution for 2030, aligned with President Biden's commitment to achieve net-zero emissions before 2050," he said.

The recovery from the pandemic is an opportunity to rebuild stronger and better. To do that, there is a need to invest in a green economy that will help to heal the planet and its people, and create well-paying, stable jobs to ensure more equitable and sustainable prosperity, he said.

Now is the time to implement transformative change: phase out coal; support a just transition, with training and opportunities for people whose jobs will be impacted; stop investing in fossil fuel projects; shift the tax burden from income to carbon, from consumers to polluters, said Guterres.

He stressed the need to close the finance gap by supporting countries that are suffering the ravaging impacts of the climate crisis. He urged the Group of Seven countries to deliver concrete results on finance at their summit in June. Those that have not done so already must commit to doubling their climate finance. All developed countries must honor the pledge to contribute 100 billion U.S. dollars annually to developing countries, he said.

He also asked all donors to commit to increasing the share of climate finance allocated to adaptation to reach 50 percent, and all financial institutions and banks to align their investments with the Paris Agreement by 2024.

"The Paris Agreement is our pact with our descendants and the whole human family. This is the race of our lifetimes. We must go much faster, and much farther. It is within our power to build a future of renewable energy and green infrastructure that protects people and planet and ensures prosperity for all. Let's get to work," he said.

Friday's event was organized by the United Nations Association of the United States of America.

中国公共网摘编QI JADE

【免责声明】:以上图、文、音/视频文章内容转载于网络(本网原创文章除外),其版权均属于原作者或归属权利人。我们尊重原创,也注重分享。转发推广仅供学习参考之用,禁止用于商业用途,并不代表本网赞同其观点。仅供交流学习了解法律、法规、政策,如无意侵犯到贵公司或个人的知识产权,部分文章转发推送时未能及时与原作者取得联系,若来源标注错误或无意侵犯到您的权益烦请告知本网制作采编部QQ号: 3555333776,微信号:GAN160003,请联系我们将立即删除或更正。电话:010-89525216。本网投稿邮箱:3555333776@QQ.COM。通讯地址:北京市通州区通胡大街78号(京贸中心)二层15号。本网原创文章欢迎转载,为尊重和维护原创权利,请转载时务必注明原创作者、来源:XXXXX网站。
点击查看更多评论>>发表感言:
验证码,看不清楚请点击更换。