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President Vladimir Putin signed a decree ordering the Russian government to work to meet the 2015 Paris Agreement to combat climate change, but stressed that any action must be balanced with the need to ensure strong economic development.
Russia, the fourth largest greenhouse gas emitter in the world, has already signaled its acceptance of the deal even as environmentalists have criticized Moscow for avoiding mandatory emissions targets for companies backed by fines.
In a decree published Wednesday, a public holiday in Russia, Putin formally ordered the government to work towards a cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 by up to 30% of emissions levels in 1990.
This, Putin said, would mean harnessing the ability of forests and other ecosystems to absorb such gases.
Mr. Putin’s order came with a big warning. He said that any action to reduce emissions must take into account the need to ensure constant and balanced socio-economic development, and ordered the government to develop and ratify a socio-economic strategy until 2050 that takes into account lower emissions.
An earlier draft of this strategy drew criticism from green groups for allowing emissions to rise before declining.
Climate change poses a serious challenge for Russia, whose economy is heavily dependent on oil and gas production as well as mining. Some of these infrastructures are built on permafrost, which is vulnerable to rising temperatures.
Mr. Putin, who questioned whether human activity is the sole driver of the warming of climate cycles, has launched himself as a defender of the environment.
He has praised the Paris Pact in the past, saying it would require countries to modernize the industry, something that will likely cost large corporations billions of dollars and incur job losses, an eventuality he said needed to be properly planned.
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