MOSCOW, July 14. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has held a phone call with US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, who is currently on a visit to Moscow, on Wednesday, the Kremlin press service informed.
The press service noted that Kerry informed Putin about his meetings with Russian colleagues, during which they discussed various aspects on the international climate agenda. "Vladimir Putin stressed that the Russian Federation attached great importance to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement, and that it called for depoliticized and professional dialogue in this sphere," the Kremlin stated.
The Kremlin added that in this regard, the sides touched upon the preparations for the 26th session of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, set to take place in Glasgow from October 31 to November 12, taking into account the national decarbonization priorities.
The message informs that the sides have exchanged opinions on the prospects of bilateral environmental cooperation in the Arctic in the context of Russia’s current chairmanship at the Arctic Council. "On the whole, it was noted that the climate agenda is one of the areas where Russia and the US have common interests and close approaches," the press service stated.
Kerry began his three-day visit to Moscow on Monday. He has already met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. On July 1, Lavrov and Kerry held a phone call, during which they discussed Russian-US cooperation on climate and agreed to carry on active bilateral contacts in this sphere as a follow-up to the Geneva summit on June 16.