US Faced Increased Pressure at Climate Summit on the 22nd

UN "2020: The Hottest Year in Human History"

Tony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State [Photo by Reuters]

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Baek Jong-min, Reporter Park Byung-hee] The United Nations announced on the 19th (local time) that the year 2020, along with 2016 and 2019, was recorded as one of the hottest years in human history. This is interpreted as the UN warning about the seriousness of global warming and urging strong countermeasures ahead of the Climate Summit scheduled for the 22nd-23rd.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), under the UN, stated in a report released that day that the Earth's temperature last year was 1.2 degrees Celsius higher than before industrialization, marking last year as one of the hottest years on record.

U.S. President Joe Biden declared rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement, which former President Donald Trump had withdrawn from, immediately after his inauguration and will hold the Climate Summit on the 22nd-23rd.

The Paris Climate Agreement, concluded in 2015, aims to keep the Earth's temperature from rising more than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. However, voices have recently increased calling for limiting the temperature rise to within 1.5 degrees Celsius. The UN warned about the seriousness of global warming by stating that the temperature rose up to 1.2 degrees last year. As global warming worsened, abnormal weather events also occurred consecutively.

President Biden is expected to strongly demand participation in climate change measures from world leaders at the Climate Summit. According to the Associated Press, Biden’s presentation of carbon reduction targets is the highlight of this climate summit. According to the report, the U.S. scientific community and environmental groups argue that the U.S. must reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 50% compared to 2005 levels by 2030.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized in a speech on climate change response that "even if the U.S. reduces carbon emissions to zero tomorrow, if it cannot address more than 85% of the total carbon emissions produced by other countries, it will lose the fight against the climate crisis." He stressed, "Countries that rely on coal power for electricity generation, invest in new coal-related plants, or allow massive deforestation will receive strong warnings from the U.S. and its allies."

Secretary Blinken also warned China, saying, "If we do not catch up with (China) now, the U.S. will not only lose the opportunity to lead future climate change responses but also lose countless jobs."

Meanwhile, according to the WMO report, marine heatwave phenomena occurred at least once in 80% of the world's oceans last year. Marine heatwaves are phenomena where seawater temperatures remain abnormally high for extended periods, causing destruction to marine ecosystems.

The U.S. suffered consecutive damages from a massive hurricane and heatwave in August last year. Hurricane Laura struck Louisiana in August last year, causing economic damage estimated at $19 billion. In the same month, temperatures in Death Valley, a desert region in Southern California, soared to 54.4 degrees Celsius. This 54.4 degrees Celsius was the highest temperature recorded on Earth in at least 80 years.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.