British Prime Minister Boris Johnson travelled to the US on Sunday with senior Cabinet officials to urge world leaders attending the UN General Assembly to act urgently on climate change.
Mr Johnson, who will host November's Cop26 summit in Scotland, will co-host a meeting on climate change with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Monday.
The two will discuss the need to help developing countries ease the effects of climate change.
“This week, as world leaders arrive in New York for the biggest diplomatic event of the year, I will be pushing them to take concrete action on coal, climate, cars and trees, so we can make a success of Cop26 and keep our climate goals within reach,” Mr Johnson said.
However, he admitted he had only a “six out of 10” chance of getting world leaders to hit a key pledge before Cop26 starts next month.
He conceded it will be “tough” to get allies to live up to their promise to give £73 billion ($100bn) a year in support to developing nations to cut their carbon emissions.
But Mr Johnson was doubtful that he would be able to get leaders to hit the target by Cop26 as he urged them to “step up to the plate” and part with more cash.
“I think getting it all done this week is going to be a stretch,” he told reporters during the flight to New York.
“But I think getting it all done by Cop: six out of 10. It’s going to be tough but people need to understand that this is crucial for the world.”
Britain is hosting the UN's climate summit from November 1 to November 12 in Glasgow.
The conference is being presented as a crucial moment to persuade governments, industry and investors to make binding commitments on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and make progress on reducing global warming to below 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
The British government says 100 world leaders have confirmed they will attend the conference.
But Alok Sharma, the president of the conference, was not able to confirm on Sunday whether Chinese President Xi Jinping has committed to attending, or whether China would send a delegation.
“On the issue of whether Xi Jinping is going to come, that is not yet confirmed," Mr Sharma told the BBC.
"Normally these things come a bit closer to summits. I am very, very hopeful that we will have a delegation from China."
Beijing, as the world’s biggest greenhouse gas emitter, would have to play a key part in any climate change agreement, he told Sky News.
“They have said to me they want the Cop26 to be a success," Mr Sharma said. "The ball is in their court.
"We want them to come forward and make it a success together with the rest of the world."
Mr Johnson, Mr Sharma and newly appointed British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss arrived in New York on Sunday for a four-day visit to the US.
After the UN General Assembly, Mr Johnson and Ms Truss will visit the White House for talks on climate change, the pandemic and international security.
It will be Mr Johnson’s first visit to the White House since US President Joe Biden took office.
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Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
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Sheikh Zayed's poem
When it is unveiled at Abu Dhabi Art, the Standing Tall exhibition will appear as an interplay of poetry and art. The 100 scarves are 100 fragments surrounding five, figurative, female sculptures, and both sculptures and scarves are hand-embroidered by a group of refugee women artisans, who used the Palestinian cross-stitch embroidery art of tatreez. Fragments of Sheikh Zayed’s poem Your Love is Ruling My Heart, written in Arabic as a love poem to his nation, are embroidered onto both the sculptures and the scarves. Here is the English translation.
Your love is ruling over my heart
Your love is ruling over my heart, even a mountain can’t bear all of it
Woe for my heart of such a love, if it befell it and made it its home
You came on me like a gleaming sun, you are the cure for my soul of its sickness
Be lenient on me, oh tender one, and have mercy on who because of you is in ruins
You are like the Ajeed Al-reem [leader of the gazelle herd] for my country, the source of all of its knowledge
You waddle even when you stand still, with feet white like the blooming of the dates of the palm
Oh, who wishes to deprive me of sleep, the night has ended and I still have not seen you
You are the cure for my sickness and my support, you dried my throat up let me go and damp it
Help me, oh children of mine, for in his love my life will pass me by.
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Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
EA Sports FC 25
Developer: EA Vancouver, EA Romania
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4&5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
Guide to intelligent investing
Investing success often hinges on discipline and perspective. As markets fluctuate, remember these guiding principles:
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Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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The biog
From: Upper Egypt
Age: 78
Family: a daughter in Egypt; a son in Dubai and his wife, Nabila
Favourite Abu Dhabi activity: walking near to Emirates Palace
Favourite building in Abu Dhabi: Emirates Palace
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Profile of Tarabut Gateway
Founder: Abdulla Almoayed
Based: UAE
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 35
Sector: FinTech
Raised: $13 million
Backers: Berlin-based venture capital company Target Global, Kingsway, CE Ventures, Entrée Capital, Zamil Investment Group, Global Ventures, Almoayed Technologies and Mad’a Investment.
McLaren GT specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 620bhp
Torque: 630Nm
Price: Dh875,000
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If you go
The flights Etihad (www.etihad.com) and Spice Jet (www.spicejet.com) fly direct from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Pune respectively from Dh1,000 return including taxes. Pune airport is 90 minutes away by road.
The hotels A stay at Atmantan Wellness Resort (www.atmantan.com) costs from Rs24,000 (Dh1,235) per night, including taxes, consultations, meals and a treatment package.
