US special envoy for climate to visit India ahead of climate summit

Washington DC, April 01: Ahead of the climate summit, the US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry will travel to India and will hold talks with India's Environment Prakash Javadekar. Kerry announced the news via a social media platform.

According to the White House Kerry will be traveling to UAE, India, and Bangladesh from April 1-9. Kerry will visit India on April 6. Kerry is visiting India, as part of his first Asia tour, for consultations on increasing climate ambition ahead of US President Joe Biden's Leaders Summit on Climate.

The statement said, "Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry will travel to Abu Dhabi, New Delhi, and Dhaka April 1-9, 2021, for consultations on increasing climate ambition ahead of President Biden’s  Leaders Summit on Climate April 22-23 and the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change later this year." Apart from Javdekar, he is also going to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi. According to some climate experts, India is a major focus of the Biden administration.

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Earlier this week, US President Joe Biden has invited 40 world leaders including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a leader's summit on climate that he will host on April 22 and 23. The aim of the summit is, "galvanizing efforts by the world’s major economies to reduce emissions during this critical decade to keep a limit to warming of 1.5 degree Celsius within reach.". Summit will reconvene the U.S.-led Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate, which brings together 17 countries responsible for approximately 80 percent of global emissions and global GDP.

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The visit by top American officials comes even as both New Delhi and Washington increase engagement on several fronts, from cooperation against Covid to climate change.

John Kerry is the second top official of the Biden Administration visiting India. In March, US Defence secretary Lloyd Austin visited New Delhi.