Biden on an unprecedented trip to the Amazon

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Joe Biden will visit the Amazon on Sunday, becoming the first US president to visit the region at a time when there are concerns about US environmental policy and Donald Trump’s return to the White House. soon

Biden heads to the Brazilian city of Manaus, in the heart of the world’s largest rainforest, as part of a tour of South America that is likely to be his last major overseas trip. before the end of his term.

The 81-year-old US President will fly over the forest and visit a museum before speaking to the media, according to the White House. He will also meet representatives of indigenous people and local officials who are involved in protecting the Amazon.

This stop, which takes place between the Asia-Pacific Summit in Lima and the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Rio de Janeiro, highlights the commitment of the Democratic President to “fight against change climate at home and abroad,” according to his National Security Advisor Jake. Sullivan said.

Sullivan emphasized at a press conference on Wednesday, “These are, of course, among the prominent issues of President Biden’s term,” he said, “This is the first time that an American president has sit to the Amazon. “

The trip also has important implications as the world prepares for Donald Trump’s return to power on January 20, which will raise concerns about the United States’ climate commitments. The United States ranks second in terms of greenhouse gas emissions in the world after China.

Trump pulled the United States out of the Paris Climate Agreement in his first term and said he would take the same step in his second term.

– Fires and tree cutting –

The Amazon forest, which is shared by nine countries, plays a vital role in combating climate change thanks to its ability to absorb carbon dioxide, one of the main gases greenhouse, and is also one of the most vulnerable regions in terms of climate impacts. environmental change and degradation.

The Amazon is one of the wettest regions in the world. But with the extreme drought hitting South America, it has been caught this year by the worst fires in two decades, according to the European Copernicus Observatory.

As a result of deforestation activities, the forest has been lost over four decades, an area almost equal to the area of ​​Germany and France combined, according to a recent study by the Amazonian Network for Social-Environmental Information and Geographical, which includes together researchers and non-governmental organizations.

Next week, Biden will meet in Rio de Janeiro with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has made the protection of this forest one of his priorities and has specifically promised to work to stop to put an end to illegal logging operations in the Brazilian part of it by the year 2030.

A bilateral meeting will be held between them on the sidelines of the summit of the leaders of the G20, which will be held on Monday and Tuesday in this Brazilian city, which will be controlled by the spectrum of Donald Trump.

Many experts have warned that Trump’s second term could block the transition to renewable energy sources started by the Biden administration, and undermine hopes for achieving critical climate goals in the long term.

During his campaign, Trump promised extensive “mining operations” and increased use of fossil energy sources. He openly questioned the reality of climate change.

The withdrawal of the United States from climate talks would undermine global efforts to reduce dependence on fossil energy by giving excuses to big polluting countries, such as China and India, their goals in the reduce this area.

DK/GR/DDS