During a visit to Moscow by US climate envoy John Kerry, the two countries announced they would collaborate on climate change despite their difficult relations.
As he spoke with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Kerry, the former secretary of state who is now US President Joe Biden’s globe-trotting climate envoy, said, “the stakes could not be greater.”
“You and I spent years negotiating on wars, chemical weapons, nuclear weapons,” Kerry added. “I would say without question that this is absolutely as essential, as urgent an undertaking.”
At the COP26 summit in Glasgow in November, Lavrov said Russia anticipates “tight collaboration” with the US, adding that Moscow “highly regards the seriousness of the challenges on climate change” and that Kerry’s three-day visit is “extremely opportune.”
Kerry’s visit, according to Russia’s top diplomat, was a “very important and good” step “to ease tensions” between the two countries.
Russia, one of the world’s largest oil and gas producers, has made commitments and remarks in recent years indicating that it is concerned about climate change.
However, critics claim that the government, which is also the fourth-largest carbon emitter, is still doing insufficient to address the situation.
Putin has long been known for his skepticism about man-made global warming and claims that Russia stands to benefit from it.
As the ice melts and the Northern Sea Route becomes more accessible, he has made the development of Russia’s Arctic area a strategic priority, which Moscow hopes to use to transport hydrocarbons to Asia.
However, in recent months, he has stated that climate change is not solely beneficial to Moscow.
Putin stated in April at his annual state of the nation address that Russia must adapt to climate change.
Putin also expressed interest in “stepping up international collaboration” on climate change during a meeting with US colleague Biden in Geneva.
In the midst of rising tensions, the United States and the European Union have declared they are willing to work with Russia on climate change.
Kerry, a former senator who served as Secretary of State under President Barack Obama, has stated that the coming months will be crucial in bolstering support for the 2015 Paris Agreement’s obligations.
