International News

PARIS, June 3, (APP/AFP) – Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
vowed Saturday to go “above and beyond” the Paris Agreement on climate change, as he met French President Emmanuel Macron following the controversial US decision to quit the deal.
Two days after US President Donald Trump sensationally announced plans to withdraw from the pact on curbing carbon emissions Modi said
India would “continue working… above and beyond the Paris accord”,
calling it “part of the world’s shared heritage”.
The agreement signed by 195 countries in the French capital in
2015 “can protect future generations and give new hope”, he said after
two hours of talks with Macron at the presidential Elysee Palace.
Macron said his discussions with the leader of the world’s fastest-growing major economy had focussed mainly on the environment.
“I want to restate here France’s full commitment to the fight
against climate warming,” said the French president.
Macron has led Europe’s defence of the Paris accord, endearing himself to opponents of Trump’s stance.
Reacting to Trump’s announcement on Thursday, Macron issued an
appeal in English to “make the planet great again” — a play on Trump’s pledge to “make America great again” that has been retweeted a quarter of
a million times.
Trump has accused China and India of getting an easy ride compared
to the US.
Modi said protecting “mother Earth” was part of Indian culture.
“For Indians, environmental protection is a profession of faith because we learn it in the vedas (ancient Hindu scriptures),” he said, in remarks translated from Hindi into French.
India, which accounts for 4.1 percent of global emissions, has not agreed to cap or cut its emissions outright like other countries but has said it will massively increase its use of green energy.