Kremlin: Putin Won't Deliver Speech at COP26 Climate Summit Via Videolink

Britain is hosting the United Nations climate change conference, also known as COP26, in Glasgow, Scotland, with the conference kicking off Sunday and is set to run until 12 November. World leaders are taking part on Monday and Tuesday.

Vladimir Putin won't be taking part at the UN climate summit in Glasgow, since participation by videolink has not been provided for, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said. Instead, the Russian president has taped an address to summit participants on the topics of forestry and land use.

Peskov said that Putin has already outlined Russia's position on climate at the recent G20 summit in Rome, which ended on Sunday.

"Of course, the topics in Glasgow and the climate topic at the G20 overlapped in many respects. Speaking at the G20, the president already received the opportunity, and used it, having outlined the approaches of the Russian side to the issue in sufficient detail," Peskov said.

Russia's Climate Priorities

In his address at the G20 discussing climate change via videolink on Sunday, Putin said Russia, like other countries, has been experiencing the negative effects of global warming, and is faced with the prospect of desertification and soil erosion. Putin said officials are "especially worried about the thawing of the permafrost, which accounts for a significant part of Russia's territory".

The president stressed that Moscow is "vigorously participating in and taking the lead on international climate mitigation and stabilisation efforts", and is faithfully complying with its obligations both under UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement.

"We are consistently implementing a policy to reduce net greenhouse emissions and are taking steps to improve energy efficiency in our national economy, to modernise our power generation industry, and reduce associated gas discharge from oil production," Putin said. He added that Russia's virtually carbon-free sources of energy, like nuclear, hydroelectric, solar and wind power already account for over 40 percent of Russia's energy generation, and 86 percent when natural gas - the lowest polluting carbon-based fuel, is taken into account.

Putin further indicated that Russia plans to achieve carbon neutrality by the year 2060 at the latest, and has a programme for improving energy efficiency in place for the period until 2035.

The president urged the creation of new climate projects -such as efforts to preserve the forests of Russia and Latin America, suggesting that investments in these areas could potentially pay off even more than investments in renewable energy - since forests, tundra, agricultural lands, seas and swamps have tremendous potential in absorbing greenhouse gases.

"To achieve full use of this amazing potential, we plan to significantly improve the quality of forest management, increase reforestation areas, expand areas of untouched nature, and introduce new agricultural technologies," Putin indicated.

Putin is not the only world leader not attending the COP26 summit. Chinese President Xi Jinping, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro also chose not to take part in person, either attending virtually or skipping altogether - in the case of Bolsonaro.

Xi is expected to publish a written speech Monday outlining China's climate position and commitments to reducing its emissions footprint. Other countries consider China's efforts to tackle climate change to be crucial, given its massive population and status as the workshop of the world, producing much of the world's manufactured goods. The world is also looking to the United States, the other global top polluter and consumer of natural resources, to reduce its emissions significantly, with President Joe Biden setting a goal for US carbon neutrality by the year 2050.