OREANDA-NEWS. Prime Minister Taavi Rõivas will participate in the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris (COP21) together with more than 160 global heads of state from 195 countries in order to achieve a global agreement to keep climate change under control.

The aim is to agree on an action plan, which establishes that the average temperature rise would remain below 2 °C in the long term. “Although in Estonia we perceive the impact of climate change to a lesser extent than in many developing countries, for example, climate change indirectly affects all of us through the abundance of climate refugees and the instability of the world economy,” Rõivas said.

According to the Prime Minister, we are currently facing a choice whether to continue with a steadily growing world population and polluting economic activities, or move towards increasing resource and energy saving, more reasonable consumption, and smarter solutions.

“In the future, the competitive advantage will be possessed by those countries, who are able to create added value from lesser and domestic resources in as smart manner as possible. Estonia could also contribute to solving global challenges through the development of innovative technological applications,” Prime Minister Rõivas said.

The aim of the European Union and Estonia in Paris is to reach a long-term and legally binding agreement, which would help the world to move towards a low-carbon and climate-resilient future. The agreement must include a reporting system and a process on the periodic review of obligations.

A record number of countries, i.e. nearly 200, participate in the UN conference in Paris. Already more than 170 countries submitted their specific proposals to reduce emissions prior to the Paris conference, covering more than 95% of global emissions.

The negotiations of the climate conference in Paris will be opened by the heads of state and government and followed by talks at expert level on 30 November 2015. Minister of the Environment Marko Pomerants will participate in the Paris conference from 6 December, and a high-level ministerial meeting takes place from 7–8 December.