US climate envoy John Kerry on 5-day India visit from Tuesday

Following his visit to China, John Kerry, the United States’ Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, is due to go to India on Tuesday for a five-day visit to talk about climate change and renewable energy.

Kerry will visit Chennai and Delhi between July 25 and July 29. Secretary Kerry will meet with top government representatives in Delhi.

The US State Department stated in a statement that Kerry’s visit is intended to advance shared goals on climate and clean energy, including joint efforts to build a platform for investments in renewable energy and storage solutions, support the deployment of zero-emission buses, and diversify clean energy supply chains.

“In Chennai, Secretary Kerry will attend the G20 Environment and Climate Sustainability Ministers Meeting,” the statement said. The G-20’s ministers for the environment and climate sustainability will meet on July 28 in Chennai, which is significant. John Kerry’s trip to India coincided with New Delhi’s increased emphasis on renewable energy.

India Aims To Achieve 50% Installed Non-fossil Capacity By Year 2030

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has stated that India now wants to achieve 50% installed non-fossil capacity by the year 2030 in a video message to the G20 Energy Ministerial Meeting in Goa.

“No talk about the future, sustainability or growth and development can be complete without energy. It impacts development at all levels, from individuals to nations,” the prime minister made the statement, at the gathering of ministers from the G20 nations.

He emphasised that India is among the world leaders in solar and wind energy and is working hard to promote sustainable development and an energy transition. Prior to that, on July 19, US climate envoy John Kerry’s four-day trip to China came to a close without any new agreements. In fact, during a speech, Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed that his country will work towards its goals of phasing out carbon dioxide emissions at its own pace and in its own way.

John Kerry Encouraged Over Newly Renewed Talks Between US and China

John Kerry nonetheless seemed encouraged that the world’s two largest polluters had resumed talks, which had been put on hold for a year due to tense relations over Taiwan, trade, and other concerns.

According to the Washington Post, he argued that just chatting represented progress and emphasised that he was not upset with the outcome. It is obvious that we are going to require a little more work, Kerry remarked, adding, “We had very frank conversations, but we came here to break new ground.”