Vladimir Putin To Speak At Biden's Online Climate Summit On April 22

Russian President Vladimir Putin will on April 22 address an international climate summit hosted by the United States, the Kremlin said Monday, despite a sharp deterioration in ties between Moscow and Western capitals.

"Vladimir Putin will outline Russia's approaches within the context of establishing broad-ranging international cooperation aimed at overcoming the negative consequences of global climate change," the Kremlin said in a statement.

Confirmation of Putin's participating in the summit via video link comes as Moscow trades barbs with Washington and the European Union over jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny and the conflict in Ukraine.

Despite mounting tensions, Russia and the United States held climate negotiations earlier this year and identified forests, nuclear energy and the Arctic as areas of cooperation.

US President Joe Biden last month invited both Xi Jinping of China and Putin to participate in the two-day summit. Beijing has yet to confirm whether it will attend.

Forty world leaders were invited to the meeting meant to mark Washington's return to the frontlines of the fight against climate change, after former president Donald Trump backed away from the issue.

Forest fires have blazed across Siberia with increasing regularity in recent years, which Russia's weather officials have partly linked to climate change.

Russia in 2020 saw record high average temperatures and a historic decline in summer ice cover on its Arctic maritime route, monitors said last month.

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