The United States will take a decision on whether to join the India-led International Solar Alliance within the next few weeks, Special US Envoy on Climate John Kerry said, reported NDTV on Tuesday.
Kerry said that the decision will be taken before the next United Nations Climate Change Conference, which is scheduled in Scotland’s Glasgow city from October 31.
The International Solar Alliance is a treaty-based inter-governmental alliance of 124 sunshine-rich countries that lie fully or partially between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn.
The aim of the agreement is adopting solar energy that could help in reducing the use of fossil fuels and combat climate change.
Kerry on Tuesday also responded to a question about why India was being asked to become a net zero carbon emitter, even though developed countries such as the United States have higher emissions.
“The problem is that mother nature does not measure whether it’s Indian gases or Chinese gases... It is the total amount that we have to deal with,” Kerry said.
He added that the climate change problem would not be solved if only one country cuts their emissions.
Kerry made these remarks at the end of his visit to Delhi, where he launched the US-India Climate Action and Finance Mobilization Dialogue with Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav.
Under the Paris Agreement, India has agreed to reduce the emission intensity of its gross domestic product (greenhouse gas emissions per unit of GDP) by 33 to 35% by 2030.
On July 15, India’s Power Minister RK Singh expressed confidence that the country will exceed its target for reducing carbon emission by 2030.
Kerry on Tuesday said that he expected India to make an announcement during the climate conference in Glasgow that begins from October 31, The Indian Express reported.
“I have told them [the Indian government], like I have many others, that this is urgent,” the envoy said. “This is the Prime Minister’s prerogative and internal deliberations need to take place before India can take that position.”
The United Nations Climate Change Conferences are yearly conferences aimed at assessing progress in achieving the objectives laid down in the Kyoto Protocol. The protocol requires industrialised countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with agreed individual targets.
In July, India had skipped a key two-day meeting of 51 countries where matters regarding the Paris climate deal were discussed, according to the Hindustan Times.
The meeting was a closed-door ministerial conference that was meant to review global efforts to fight the climate crisis ahead of the Glasgow conference.
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