Climate Summit: Amid pledges, India, US to partner on energy, climate

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced an energy and a climate partnership with the US during the two-day Leaders Climate Summit that included 40 heads of states and governments. The partnership, termed India-US Climate & Energy Agenda 2030, was announced officially in a joint India-US statement released by India’s Ministry of External Affairs. According to the ministry's statement, the partnership aims to mobilise finance and speed clean energy deployment, demonstrate and scale innovative clean technologies needed to decarbonise sectors, including industry, transportation, power, and buildings, and build capacity to measure, manage, and adapt to the risks of climate-related impacts. The ministry statement said the partnership would run on the strategic clean energy partnership and the climate action and finance mobilisation dialogue, which will include a range of existing processes. US President Joe Biden announced an aggressive new plan to reduce the country's contribution to global warming during the summit, and he urged other countries to follow the same. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson backed Biden's climate action goals. Chinese President Xi Jinping said China has committed to carbon neutrality and will strictly control coal-fired power generation projects and limit the increase in coal consumption. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who has aggressively rolled back environmental protections in his country, moved up Brazil's goal for achieving carbon neutrality by a decade to 2050. The President also pledged to eliminate illegal deforestation in the Amazon by 2030 and said he would double the money allocated for inspections. The US and Brazil have been negotiating a deal on Amazon deforestation, but as per media reports, earlier this month, the negotiations hit a deadlock, with Brazil demanding payment upfront and the US asking for results first. At the summit, Bolosnaro said there must be fair payment for environmental services to recognise the economic importance of conservation. Image Source Also read: Greenhouse emissions: Coal is integral to us, India tells UNFCCC Also read: India-US to Expand Energy Partnership