The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud heads the Kingdom’s high-level delegation at the “Leaders Summit on Climate” - which is to be launched today, Thursday, 10 Ramadan 1442 AH, corresponding to April 22, 2021 AD, in the presence of 40 world leaders.

This is in response to the invitation presented by President Joseph Biden, President of the United States of America.

The participation of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques comes as a confirmation of the Kingdom’s pioneering role at the global, regional and local levels in facing climate change and an extension of its efforts in this field, especially what was launched by His Highness the Crown Prince recently within the framework of the initiatives of Green Saudi Arabia and the Green Middle East.

Speech of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman at the summit

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud - may God protect him - affirmed that achieving sustainable development requires a comprehensive methodology that takes into account the various developmental conditions around the world, and that the comprehensive solution to confront the challenges of climate change lies in raising the level of international cooperation.

This came in his speech - may God support him - during the virtual global climate summit, and the following is its text:

In the name of of Allah the Merciful

Your Majesties, Excellencies and Highnesses

Distinguished participants,

At the outset, we would like to thank His Excellency President Biden for holding this summit to confront the phenomenon of climate change that threatens life on the planet, and does not stop at national borders, as the goal is sustainable development and its achievement requires a comprehensive methodology that takes into account the various developmental conditions around the world.

In accordance with the Kingdom's Vision 2030, we have launched a package of strategies and legislation, such as the National Environment Strategy and clean energy projects. With the aim of reaching a production capacity of (50%) of the Kingdom's needs by 2030.

Raising the level of international cooperation is the comprehensive solution to facing the challenges of climate change, and during our presidency of the G20 last year, we pushed for the adoption of the concepts of a circular carbon economy and launched two international initiatives to reduce land degradation and protect coral reefs. His Highness the Crown Prince also recently announced the Saudi Green Initiative and the Green Middle East, which aim to reduce carbon emissions in the region by more than (10%) of global contributions, and plant 50 billion trees in the region, in addition to many qualitative initiatives.

These two initiatives have won the support of the international community, and we will work with partners to achieve their goals by hosting a forum for the Saudi Green Initiative and a summit for the Green Middle East Initiative this year. Finally, we would like to emphasize our interest and commitment to cooperating to combat climate change to create a better environment for future generations. Our planet, peace and mercy of God be upon you.

The opening of the summit

US President Joe Biden on Thursday inaugurated the virtual summit on climate change with the participation of leaders of dozens of countries, including Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Biden announced in his opening speech that the United States plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions until 2030 by 50% compared to the rate in 2005, in order to reduce this indicator to the level of zero until 2050.

The US President called on the international community, especially the world’s largest economies, to unite its efforts in order to contain the climate crisis, stressing that no country can solve this problem alone.

Biden warned that the price of inaction in dealing with the climate crisis is getting steeper, pointing to the necessity of taking decisive action now in order to create a cleaner, fairer and more prosperous economy in the world.

The US President said that the next decade will be, according to the views of scientists, a decisive stage in the struggle against climate change, and he called on all countries to take more effective steps in facing this danger in order to “ensure a sustainable future and overcome a crisis threatening the existence of humanity.”

Biden pointed to the need to work to limit the rate of global warming under the ceiling of 1.5 degrees Celsius, adding: “We must all adopt decisions, and this summit represents our first step in this path that we take together.”

In his speech, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, announced that the climate summit will discuss “reducing carbon emissions in the face of global warming.”

He stressed the need to “translate commitments on the ground regarding emissions.”

“More than 900 cities around the world have committed to reducing emissions,” he said.

Guterres called for “mobilizing the necessary political will to confront climate change.”

Speakers include French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, two of the leaders whose countries top the list of countries with the most emissions.

Likewise, Russian President Vladimir Putin, who expressed his country’s commitment to its international obligations in the field of combating climate change, in his speech during the virtual climate summit organized by his US counterpart, Joe Biden.

Beijing confirmed that Chinese President Xi Jinping will participate in the summit, and the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that Xi Jinping “will deliver an important speech ... via the Internet from Beijing” during the virtual summit, dispelling doubts about the president’s participation.

The event, sponsored by the White House, paves the way for another global summit to be held in November in Glasgow, Scotland, which aims to ensure that the world achieves the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.