President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr. Prime-Minister Johnson, ladies and gentlemen,
I am pleased to have this opportunity to welcome participants in the meeting on forests and land-use.
I am convinced that the conservation of forests and other natural ecosystems is a key component of international efforts to address global warming and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. This topic fits organically into the multidimensional agenda of the Glasgow Climate Change Conference.
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By aiming to build a carbon-neutral economy by no later than 2060, Russia is relying, among other things, on the unique resource of forest ecosystems available to us, and their significant capacity to absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen. After all, our country accounts for around 20 per cent of the world’s forestland.
We take the strongest and most vigorous measures to conserve it. We improve forest management, and fight illegal logging and forest fires. We are expanding reforestation areas. We have been consistently increasing funding for these purposes.
Russia supports the draft joint declaration on forests and land-use proposed for approval at today’s meeting. We expect its implementation to facilitate closer partnerships between all interested States in forest conservation. This will undoubtedly serve to fulfill the objectives of reducing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere set out in the Paris Agreement.
I would like to wish all of us success and all the best.
Thank you.