‘Truly global coalition’ to combat climate change: Obama

US President Barack Obama has proposed a “truly global coalition”, including Asian giants India and China, to combat climate change and ensure collective energy security of the world.

As he announced a series of measures to achieve energy independence for the US, Obama also said America is ready to play its role to protect the climate but wanted the rest of the world, including India and China, to do their bit.

“To protect our climate and our collective security, we must call together a truly global coalition. I’ve made it clear that we will act, but so too must the world.

“That’s how we will deny leverage to dictators and dollars to terrorists, and that’s how we will ensure that nations like China and India are doing their part, just as we are now willing to do ours,” he said yesterday.

“I’m announcing the first steps on our journey toward energy independence, as we develop new energy, set new fuel efficiency standards and address greenhouse gas emissions,” Obama said.

Within a few hours of Obama revealing the new measures, his administration named Todd Stern, a veteran of the Kyoto Protocol talks, as the Special US Envoy on Climate Change.

The Special Envoy will serve as a principal advisor on international climate policy and strategy. In this capacity, Todd will participate in all energy-related policy discussions that can have an impact on carbon emissions, and will be looking for opportunities to forge working alliances.

“With the appointment today of a Special Envoy, we are sending an unequivocal message that the United States will be energetic, focused, strategic and serious about addressing global climate change and the corollary issue of clean energy,” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said making the announcement at the State Department.

Asserting that the US must take bold action to create a new US energy economy that creates millions of jobs, Obama said the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan before Congress places a down payment on this economy.

The plan will put 460,000 Americans to work with clean energy investments and double the capacity to generate alternative energy over the next three years.

It will lay down 3,000 miles of transmission lines to deliver this energy to every corner of the US. The plan will save taxpayers USD two billion a year by making 75 per cent of federal buildings more efficient. Further, it will save working families hundreds of dollars on their energy bills by weatherising two million homes.

“This is the boost that our economy needs and the new beginning that our future demands,” Obama said.

By passing the bill, Obama said the Congress can act where Washington has failed to act over and over again for 30 years.

“We need more than the same old empty promises. We need to show that this time it will be different. This is the time that Americans must come together on behalf of our common prosperity and security,” he said.

The President also said it must be ensured that the fuel-efficient cars of tomorrow are built in the US.

“Increasing fuel efficiency in our cars and trucks is one of the most important steps that we can take to break our cycle of dependence on foreign oil. It will also help spark the innovation needed to ensure that our auto industry keeps pace with competitors around the world,” he said.