MOSCOW – Humanity may well go extinct if it fails to address environmental problems, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned yesterday.
“We very often hear alarming signals that if humanity does not deal with environmental issues, then it may simply cease to exist,” he said.
Putin sounded the alarm at the All-Russian Youth Ecological Forum: Environmental Issues Require Special Attention in the eastern city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
Despite differing opinions, he added, it is obvious that humans have caused numerous ecological problems.
Putin criticised Europe’s approach to global environmental issues, which he described as “not the best way”, such as cutting off Russian gas supplies, and returning to less green sources of energy, namely coal.
Stressing that global problems require global cooperation, he said it would be “impossible to solve global problems by local means, even if these local efforts are based on noble tasks”.
“Therefore international cooperation in the field of ecology, without any doubt, will continue,” he elaborated while expressing confidence that despite the current tensions, international cooperation on the environment, space, and arms reduction would continue.
Putin also stressed that Russia’s future was linked to the Arctic region and that to fully develop this territory, it needed to solve various environmental issues.
“Russia is returning to the Arctic both from an economic and security point of view to ensure the country’s defence capability, preventing emergencies.
“We will develop the Emergency Ministry’s infrastructure there. The development of the Northern Sea Route will take place, and we have already launched some major economic projects there, including in the energy sector,” he said. – Bernama, September 6, 2022
