Environment chief Massoumeh Ebtekar has hailed adoption of the climate deal during the 21st session of the Conferece of the Parties (COP21 in Paris that aims to curb greenhouse gas emissions and limit global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius.
“The unity shown in the adoption of the deal is a feat worth celebrating,” she said in a statement.
“The Paris deal gives hope to the people of a world grappling with war and terror.”
Ebtekar, who doubles as a vice president, congratulated the United Nations for leading the global campaign against global warming and commended the French government for “steering the talks in the right direction and hosting a secure event amid security concerns.”
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius presided as the president of the climate change conference that ended at the weekend after marathon talks.
More than 20 years of fraught climate talks finally culminated in the signing and adoption of a historic pact by 195 countries in the French capital on Saturday.
She stressed that the government is committed to meeting its unconditional pledge of 4% reduction in emissions by 2030.
The head of Iran’s Department of Environment said she had spoken with Fabius by telephone on Saturday before the deal was announced.
“We agreed that it is important to take the poor nations’ concern into account and do everything in our power to support them,” Ebtekar said, adding that the French official commended Iran’s strong presence at the talks.
Iran is one of the world’s top 10 producers of greenhouse gas emissions.
The signatories of the deal have agreed to reduce emissions, raise $100 billion a year by 2020 to help poor countries adapt their economies, and accept a new goal of net zero emissions by 2050. The deal will go into effect in 2020.
The first universal climate deal will see an accelerated phase-out of fossil fuels, the growth of renewable energy streams and powerful new carbon markets to enable countries to trade emissions and protect forests.
To meet its unconditional pledge, Iran will need an estimated $1.75 billion a year, while to reach its conditional goal of 12% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, about $5.25 billion per year is needed.
In other words, Iran needs $35 billion in international support to meet its conditional target.
