Call between COP26 President Designate Alok Sharma and US Special Presidential Climate Envoy John Kerry

COP26 President Designate Alok Sharma and US Special Presidential Climate Envoy John Kerry spoke today, on Secretary Kerry’s first full day in his new role.

Mr Sharma congratulated Secretary Kerry on bringing the US back to the Paris Agreement yesterday, noting the great importance of the accord being fully universal again.

They agreed that there is no time to waste on tackling climate change. They noted that our two countries are once again tightly aligned in prioritising this shared challenge and will work together to raise global efforts ahead of COP26 in November.

Mr Sharma said that, as hosts of COP26, the UK had sent a clear message to the world in setting an ambitious new Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) in December and that he looked forward to seeing the US’s own ambitious NDC in the coming months.

Mr Sharma and Secretary Kerry agreed on the particular importance of international climate finance, and for both the UK and the US to work closely with countries who are especially vulnerable to climate change. They also noted the encouraging growth in the shift to renewable energy across the world.

The pair agreed that their respective officials should work together closely. They looked forward to speaking regularly in the run up to G7 and COP26, and to meeting in person at the soonest possibility.