This vote will pave way for the treaty to enter into force by this year
In a historic vote held at the plenary session of the EU Parliament in Strasbourg, a majority of the members voted in favour of ratifying the Paris agreement. Out of the 678 votes recorded, 610 were in favour of ratification. Only 38 votes were in the negative, and the rest of the members abstained from voting.The EU-28 nations account for approximately 12 per cent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and are the third-largest GHG emitters in the world.At a press conference held soon after the vote, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who was present during the vote, said that EU nations will submit their joint instrument of ratification within a few days, and with this vote, the Paris Agreement will be ready to enter into force as the cumulative emissions of the ratifying parties will cross the minimum required threshold of 55 per cent of global emissions.So far, 62 parties, accounting for almost 52 per cent of global emissions have ratified the Paris Agreement. The Agreement will enter into force 30 days after at least 55 parties, representing at least 55 per cent of global emissions have ratified.
In a statement released on Tuesday, EU President Jean-Claude Juncker said, “Today the European Union turned climate ambition into climate action. The Paris Agreement is the first of its kind and it would not have been possible were it not for the European Union. Today we continued to show leadership and prove that, together, the European Union can deliver.”Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Cañete said, “Our collective task is to turn our commitments into action on the ground. And here Europe is ahead of the curve. We have the policies and tools to meet our targets, steer the global clean energy transition and modernise our economy. The world is moving and Europe is in a driver's seat, confident and proud of leading the work to tackle climate change”.The EU Commission has already brought forward the legislative proposals to deliver on their commitment to reduce emissions by at least 40 per cent by 2030, the statement said.
Keywords: EU Parliament, votes in favour of ratifying Paris agreement, Climate change
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