US President Barack Obama called Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, as he works to spur a successful conclusion to the climate talks outside Paris.
The PMO’s Twitter handle said both leaders emphasised their strong commitment to address issues related to climate change that are currently being discussed at ongoing Conference of Parties (CoP21) in Paris, without impeding the progress of developing countries.
Earlier, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said that Obama is getting regular updates from administration officials in Paris. He anticipates that Obama will be calling other world leaders in the coming days.
The US has been working to persuade developing countries like India to take aggressive action on climate change, a major sticking point in the talks.
Poorer and developing countries maintain that they are less able to deal with climate change and bear less responsibility for it than industrialised nations that have heavily polluted for decades. PM Modi has said climate change is a global problem that has not been caused by India.
Earnest did not elaborate about Tuesday’s call, but said that the US has played a leading role in securing emissions commitments from other nations and that the administration is optimistic about the outcome of the climate conference.
Read more from The Quint’s coverage of the COP21 here.