Despite minimal emissions, Armenia faces serious consequences of  climate change - RA president 

ArmInfo.  Armenia faces serious challenges related to climate change: despite its share of greenhouse gas emissions being less than 0.01%, the average temperature in the  country has increased by more than 1 degree Celsius in recent  decades. This was stated by Armenian President Vahagn Khachaturyan on  April 22, speaking at the plenary session of the Regional Ecological  Summit (RES), currently underway in Astana.

Referring to forecasts, he noted that this increase will continue  until mid-century. Khachaturyan noted that climate change has also  led to very serious natural disasters, such as floods and droughts,  causing significant environmental losses and threatening the lives  and livelihoods of the population. "All this leads to a shortage of  water resources. Access to drinking water is currently limited,  especially in rural and remote areas. Water security now also impacts  agriculture, agricultural producers, and, in general, the well- being  of the people and the population," the Armenian President noted. In  this regard, he stated that Armenia welcomes Kazakhstan's initiative  in the water sector (the creation of the International Water  Organization - ed.) to launch global consultations with international  partners to strengthen cooperation for more effective water resource  management. He stated that Armenia will actively participate in these  consultations. "Armenia has demonstrated and continues to demonstrate  that there is room for international cooperation and that we must  contribute to the global environment. We have our own targets for  reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 35% compared to 1990 levels,  with international support, of course. Armenia has undertaken these  commitments understanding and accepting that we have limitations, and  only with international cooperation will we be able to achieve our  goals in terms of risk mitigation and adaptation in the interests of  global justice and shared responsibility. Rising temperatures are one  of the drivers of biodiversity loss and ecosystem destruction. And  all of this will impact food security, public health, and so on.  Therefore, in this regard, it is crucial to strengthen and intensify  global efforts to preserve and promote biodiversity," Khachaturyan  noted.

He recalled that this fall, Armenia will host the 17th meeting of the  Conference of the Parties on Biological Diversity (COP17). "This  demonstrates that even small countries can make significant  commitments to enhancing global biodiversity. Armenia has high hopes  that we will see you all and the leaders of other countries in  Yerevan this October to conduct monitoring and identify new measures  for further action to protect the environment and nature," the  Armenian leader noted.

He emphasized that international cooperation, the mobilization of  global financial resources, and the exchange of expertise and  technology are vital for addressing global environmental challenges,  particularly in combating climate change, ensuring food security, and  promoting more efficient water use. "Armenia is ready to cooperate  with everyone, both in the region and beyond. We are ready to share  our own experience and our own developments, because only together  can we protect our planet Earth and ensure sustainability and  prosperity for our society for generations to come," he concluded.

On April 22, the Regional Environmental Summit 2026, initiated by  Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and designed to unite the  countries of Central Asia to develop common solutions to combat  climate change in partnership with the UN, opened in Astana.

The goal of the 2026 Regional Economic Cooperation Summit is to  create an open platform for developing joint and practical solutions  to climate and environmental challenges, bringing together a wide  range of countries, regions, and partners, and demonstrating, using  the example of Central Asia, how interregional cooperation  strengthens global efforts.

The summit received broad support from international partners,  including the UN, the Secretariats of the three Rio Conventions (the  UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the UN Convention  on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the UN Convention to Combat  Desertification (UNCCD)), UNECE, UNDP, UN-Habitat, UNEP, UNICEF,  UNFPA, FAO, UNESCO, UNIDO, WMO, ILO, OECD, IEA, IRENA, ADB, WB, IMWI,  SWITCH-Asia, and other organizations. In particular, the United  Nations expressed support in General Assembly Resolution 78/147 of 19  December 2023, "Central Asia Facing Environmental Challenges:  Strengthening Regional Solidarity for Sustainable Development and  Prosperity."