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Joe Biden has appointed former Secretary of State John Kerry as a special climate envoy, a sign that the president-elect is putting global warming at the center of his foreign policy.
While serving as Secretary of State under former President Barack Obama, Kerry, 76, called climate change “the scariest weapon of mass destruction in the world.” On trips from the glaciers of Greenland to the Solomon Islands, Kerry emphasized cooperation to tackle greenhouse gas emissions.
It will be an honor to work with our allies and partners, along with emerging young leaders in the climate movement, to address the climate crisis with the seriousness and urgency it deserves.
– John Kerry (@JohnKerry) November 23, 2020
Kerry, whose nomination does not require confirmation from the US Senate, will have a seat on the National Security Council (NSC) in the White House, Biden’s transition team said Monday, marking the first time that an official of that. body will be dedicated to climate. problem.
“This marks the first time the NCI will include a dedicated climate change officer, reflecting the president-elect’s commitment to address climate change as an urgent national security issue,” Biden’s transition team said in a statement.
Biden has pledged to turn the tide on climate from President Donald Trump, who doubts traditional climate science. Trump withdrew the United States from the 2015 Paris climate agreement and dismantled Obama-era environmental and climate regulations to increase drilling, extraction and production.
Kerry will face a challenging task to win the trust of the world after Trump’s rejection of climate diplomacy. While Trump has declared the Paris Agreement too expensive for Americans, China, the world’s leading greenhouse gas emitter, has positioned itself as a climate catalyst, announcing ambitious new targets in September to reduce pollution.
Before the historic Paris deal, Kerry pushed China and the United States, the world’s second-leading broadcaster, to agree on emissions targets and work towards a global deal.
Kerry will likely get started quickly as Biden pledged to re-enter the Paris Agreement soon after he took office.
‘Gathering of the world’
Unlike Trump, Biden believes that climate change puts national security at risk because it leads to regional instability and requires more humanitarian missions from the US military.
The Biden administration, which takes office on January 20, will likely help push countries to transition from coal, oil and natural gas, develop renewable energy and advanced batteries, and preserve delicate ecosystems such as forests. The work will require Kerry to go beyond promoting action within the United Nations climate framework.
“He is well aware that the mandate for the next few years is not to sit in the grand halls of the UN negotiations to put the finishing touches on the Paris regulation, but to rally the world around key areas of action,” said Paul Bodnar. , senior director of energy and climate under Obama.
Kerry will also likely work with a White House counterpart, which is expected to be announced soon, focusing on indoor climate issues.
Late last year, Kerry launched “World War Zero,” a bipartisan group of world leaders and celebrities to combat climate change.
Floating ice was seen in the Arctic Ocean in September [Natalie Thomas/Reuters]‘Dig out of ourselves’
Obama expressed confidence in Biden’s choices for key national security personnel on Monday, but said the US transition from “America First” to its traditional role as a global leader would take time after Biden becomes president in January.
“Damage has been done that will take some time to get us out of,” Obama said in an interview with the Washington Post. “But there is no doubt that Joe has the right people to do it, and I have full confidence that they will be able to do it.”
The incoming president will appoint longtime advisor Antony Blinken as secretary of state. He’s also selecting Jake Sullivan as his national security advisor.
Biden is also expected to choose Janet Yellen, who was named by Obama to head the Federal Reserve, as the first woman to become secretary to the treasury.
Biden’s emerging government marks a return to a more traditional approach to government, relying on veteran politicians with deep experience and strong relationships in Washington and global capitals.
Attorney Alejandro Mayorkas is likely to be the Secretary of National Security and Linda Thomas-Greenfield the Ambassador to the United Nations. Avril Haines, former deputy director of the CIA, will be named director of national intelligence, the first woman to fill that post.
Thomas-Greenfield is black and Mayorkas is Cuban American.
“They are experienced leaders, tested in crisis situations, ready to go racing from day one,” said the transition team.
“These officials will begin working immediately to rebuild our institutions, renew and reinvent American leadership to keep Americans safe at home and abroad, and address the decisive challenges of our time: from infectious diseases to terrorism to nuclear proliferation, to cyber threats and climate change. “
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