New Delhi, (Asian independent) India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Climate Action with a basic objective to establish a framework to facilitate and enhance bilateral cooperation on climate action, and contribute towards implementing the Paris Agreement 2015.
Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav signed the MoU on behalf of India with his counterpart Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Climate Envoy and Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology.
The Paris Agreement was signed in 2015 at the end of the annual climate change conference for global collective efforts at reducing carbon emissions to restrict global temperature rise to preferably 1.5 degrees Celsius as compared to the pre-industrial area.
Earlier, in a bilateral meeting, the two leaders discussed issues relating to climate change, hosting of COP28 and other related matters. Yadav took note of UAE’s bid to host COP28 in 2023, and stated that the concerns of developing countries, particularly in areas of implementation, support including finance and technology, need to be prioritized.
The Environment Minister stressed that the issues of climate finance, adaptation, loss & damage, therefore, need more focus on the road beyond COP26. Yadav acknowledged and appreciated the UAE’s climate actions, and also shared India’s concrete climate actions. He also requested the UAE to consider joining Coalition for Disaster Resilience Infrastructure (CDRI) and Leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT).
Both the countries also acknowledged that with the signing of the MoU on climate action, both sides may explore how to strengthen bilateral cooperation on climate action mutually, especially in the areas and activities identified in the MoU.
