Leaders from the G20 group of nations agreed on Sunday to boost flagging global growth, tackle climate change and crack down on tax avoidance but ties between the West and Russia plummeted to a new low over the crisis in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin left the G20 summit in Brisbane early as U.S. President Barack Obama accused Russia of invading Ukraine and Britain warned of a possible "frozen conflict" in Europe. Several Western nations warned Russia of further sanctions if it did not withdraw troops and weapons from Ukraine. "I think President Putin can see he is at a crossroads," said British Prime Minister David Cameron. "If he continues to destabilise Ukraine there will be further sanctions, further measures. "There is a cost to sanctions, but there would be a far greater cost in allowing a frozen conflict on the continent of Europe to be created and maintained." Obama said Russia's isolation was unavoidable. "We would prefer a Russia that is fully integrated with the … [Read more...] about G20 commits to higher growth, fight climate change; Russia isolated over Ukraine
Obama climate change
US scholar hails an article on climate change of PM Nguyen Tan Dung and his co-authors
(VOVworld) – A US scholar has hailed an article on climate change written by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim, and Filipino President Benigno Aquino, saying that it helps countries to come closer to an agreement on the necessary measures to deal with urgent climate change issues. Anders Corr, who founded New York-based Corr Analytics Inc. which provides political risk analysis, highlighted the article’s importance, saying it mentioned several big solutions, including initiatives on carbon credit. … [Read more...] about US scholar hails an article on climate change of PM Nguyen Tan Dung and his co-authors
U.S. to face multibillion-dollar bill from climate change: report
Annual property losses from hurricanes and other coastal storms of $35 billion; a decline in crop yields of 14 percent, costing corn and wheat farmers tens of billions of dollars; heat wave-driven demand for electricity costing utility customers up to $12 billion per year. These are among the economic costs that climate change is expected to exact in the United States over the next 25 years, according to a bipartisan report released on Tuesday. And that's just for starters: The price tag could soar to hundreds of billions by 2100. Commissioned by a group chaired by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, former Secretary of the Treasury and Goldman Sachs alum Henry Paulson, and environmentalist and financier Tom Steyer, the analysis "is the most detailed ever of the potential economic effects of climate change on the U.S.," said climatologist Michael Oppenheimer of Princeton University. The report lands three weeks after President Barack Obama ordered U.S. regulators to take … [Read more...] about U.S. to face multibillion-dollar bill from climate change: report
US, Canada pledge measures to boost TPP and climate change
(VOVWorld) - US President Barack Obama met with Canada’s new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday in Washington DC to discuss bilateral trade, the war on terrorism, climate change, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement. Both leaders expressed a shared commitment to ratify the TPP deal signed with 10 other Asia-Pacific countries last October. The US and Canada agreed to lift customs procedures to facilitate transportation, trade, and investment between the two countries. The two nations agreed to take steps to fight climate change, including cutting methane emissions and ratifying the Paris Agreement as soon as possible. Trudeau reconfirmed that he and President Obama agree on many issues including a commitment to ensuring a clean and prosperous future. The two leaders also discussed ways to combat terrorism and solve the ongoing Syrian migrant crisis. … [Read more...] about US, Canada pledge measures to boost TPP and climate change
Obama, UN at odds with G-20 host Abbott on climate change
President Barack Obama and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for greater action on climate change, as Group-of-20 host Australia sought to keep the focus of this weekend’s summit on economic issues. “No nation is immune and every nation has a responsibility to do its part,” Obama said in a key note speech in Brisbane, Australia today where leaders of the 20-largest economies are meeting. Australia and the U.S. historically “have not been the most energy efficient of nations, which means we’ve got to step up,” he said. Ban told reporters that “climate change is the defining issue of our times, therefore it’s only natural that G-20 leaders should focus much more on this.” Australia’s leader Tony Abbott, who in 2009 called climate science “absolute crap” and earlier this year dismantled his nation’s carbon-price mechanism, has rebuffed appeals to put the issue more firmly on the G-20 agenda. … [Read more...] about Obama, UN at odds with G-20 host Abbott on climate change