Kerry calls for ‘ambitious’ Paris climate deal

Secretary of State John Kerry is urging world leaders to come together on climate change ahead of a major United Nations conference in Paris this year.

“We need every country on the same page, all pushing for an ambitious, durable, and inclusive agreement that will finally put us on the path towards a global clean-energy future,” Kerry said Saturday during a speech to the Milan Expo in Italy. 

{mosads}“The kind of agreement that we’re working toward will prove that world leaders finally understand the scope of the challenge that we are up against.”

Kerry and top diplomats from nations around the world are setting high expectations for the U.N.’s climate conference, where leaders hope to secure a worldwide deal to reduce carbon emissions and begin tackling climate change more aggressively.

His Saturday speech came as negotiators prepare to meet in Bonn, Germany this week to hash out a draft climate deal ahead of the summit.

The deadline for submitting countrywide carbon reduction plans was earlier this month, and 146 nations responsible for 87 percent of emissions worldwide offered up proposals. The U.S. has pledged a 26- to 28-percent reduction in emissions from 2005 levels by 2025. 

Kerry said Sunday that all countries need to prepare to implement their carbon goals, warning that, if climate change is not addressed, it will have a dire impact on everything from global food supplies to national security to refugee crises, like the current one emanating from Syria.

A climate deal in Paris “will help leaders at every level of government in every corner of the globe to know that we are all together part of a worldwide commitment to build sustainable economies,” Kerry said. 

“And most important, it will help to bring about a safer and healthier future — and it will help us live up to our responsibility for generations to come.”