France welcomes India’s decision to ratify Paris Climate pact

New Delhi

France welcomed India’s decision to ratify the Paris Climate Change agreement aimed at containing global warming by cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

French minister of environment and energy Segolene Royal complimented Prime Minister Narendra Modi for deciding to ratify the ambitious pact.

The historic Paris Agreement, reached in December last year, will come into force after it is ratified by at least 55 countries, accounting for 55% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

In a tweet, the French minister congratulated Modi for the crucial decision.

French ambassador Alexandre Ziegler also hailed India’s decision to ratify the pact.

“Welcome decision by Hon’ble PM @narendramodi that India will ratify #ParisAgreement on Oct 2, birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi @PMOIndia,” he tweeted.

Read | UN chief lauds India’s decision to ratify Paris agreement

The US has already welcomed India’s decision.

The Prime Minister on Sunday announced that India will ratify the Paris Climate Change agreement on October 2.

During the Paris climate meet in December last year, more than 190 nations agreed on setting ambitious goals for capping global warming and funnelling trillions of dollars to poor countries facing climate catastrophe. It had set a target of limiting global temperature increases by two degree Celsius.

While western countries, including the US, had been supporting an early ratification of the pact, India had been seeking more time to complete its national processes, fearing that any hasty decision may impact its developmental projects.

The issue of India ratifying the Paris deal had come up for discussion between Prime Minister Modi and US President Barack Obama on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in Vientiane, Laos earlier this month.

Climate change is a vital aspect and one of the centrepieces of Obama’s legacy and the US president has been quite vocal about the effects that climate change may unleash.

He has often said climate change is the greatest long-term threat facing the world, manifesting itself as droughts, storms and flooding.

Read | Here’s why India is ratifying the Paris climate treaty