Biden urges world to fulfill climate promises

Biden urges world to fulfill climate promises

U.S. President Joe Biden called on nations to work together on a transition to clean energy.

This report produced by Zachary Goelman.

U.S. PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: "The commitments we made must become real." U.S. President Joe Biden called on nations to transition to clean energy in a bid to fight global warming, while creating robust green economies.

Biden said now was the time to turn their pledges into reality.

BIDEN: "Commitment without us doing it is just a lot of hot air, no pun intended." He spoke at the closing session of a U.S.-hosted global climate summit on Friday.

The event featured dozens of world leaders.

Biden used it to declare the United States was reclaiming its leadership role after four years under former President Donald Trump, who withdrew from the 2015 Paris Agreement to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

TRUMP ON NOVEMBER 22, 2020: "The Paris accord was not designed to save the environment, it was designed to kill the American economy." Biden brought the U.S. back into the accord shortly after taking office, and at the start of the summit Biden declared a new goal to cut U.S. carbon emissions in half by the end of the decade.

BIDEN: "And that's what we can do, if we take action to build an economy that's not only more prosperous, but healthier." The Biden administration also made clear it was looking to new technologies to curb emissions.

U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm called clean technology "our generation's moonshot." GRANHOLM: "And today we choose to solve the climate crisis.

Imagine what we can do by the end of the decade." Biden repeatedly hammered the point that green technology and policy would unlock economic, business, and job growth, to counter domestic political opposition from Republicans who claim greenhouse gas regulations could hurt industry.

BIDEN: "Think about it.

What else could there be that would have the opportunity to create so many jobs while doing so much good?" The U.S. summit sets the stage for annual United Nations climate talks set for November, in Scotland, where nearly 200 countries will update their pledges under the Paris climate pact.