core sector communique

Indo-US Dialogue on climate change to continue at Scientific, Negotiators and Ministerial Level

Minister Smt. Jayanthi Natarajan, Minister of state for Environment and Forests (Independent Charge) said that it is important to remain engaged on issues such as equity, accelerated transfer of technologies and trade measures at and beyond Durban and the crucial role of Indo-US programmes regarding science of climate change to further strengthen the bilateral engagement. During a meeting with a high level US delegation led by Special Envoy for Climate Change Mr. Todd Stern here today, Smt Natarajan brought out the Indian perspective about the balanced outcome on both the LCA and KP tracks under the Bali Road Map.

During the meeting, scientific and technical cooperation between the two countries on issues relating to climate change, both present and future, were deliberated upon. Both sides exchanged their views, in a cordial atmosphere on bilateral issues and the ongoing climate change negotiations in the multilateral fora under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Both sides agreed that operationlization of the Cancun decision in a balanced manner should be the goal for the meeting of the Conference of Parties under UNFCCC at Durban in December 2011.

Mr. Stern conveyed his view on transparency arrangements, i.e. International Assessment and Review (IAR) for developed countries and International Consultations and Analysis (ICA) for developing countries, the principles and approaches for functioning of the Green Climate Fund, the Technology Mechanism, the Financial Mechanism and the legal form of the Agreed Outcome of the LCA process.

At the end of the meeting, both sides agreed that the Indo-US dialogue on Climate Change issues would be continued at the scientific level, the negotiators level and the Ministerial level.

India and the USA have a long history of cooperation on environmental and forestry issues and the present meeting was in continuation of that engagement. In the technical level meeting which met yesterday, the US and the Indian officials discused climate change issues of mutual concern under the leadership of Mr. Todd Stern and Dr. T. Chatterjee, Secretary, Ministry of Environment & Forests.

Sh T Chatterjee, Secretary, Sh J M Mauskar, Special Secretariy, Sh R R Rashmi, Joint Secretary, Sh Jagdish Kishwan, Additional Director General, Forests, Dr Subodh Sharma, Adviser and Sh T S Trimurthi, Joint Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs took part in this discussion.