UPDATE 2: Ministry: Russia plans to ratify Paris Climate Agreement 2020

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ST. PETERSBURG, Jun 2 (PRIME) -- Russia plans to ratify the Paris Climate Agreement 2020 and will make the final decision no earlier than January 2019, the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry said Friday, citing Minister Sergei Donskoi, but presidential aide Andrei Belousov said without the U.S. the agreement can become void.

“Russia plans to ratify the Paris Agreement until 2020 but we will make the final decision no earlier than in January 2019, whether to ratify or not,” Donskoi said, as cited in the statement.

He said that the decision will depend on the rules of implementation of the deal.

Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Khloponin said that Russia will fulfill its Paris Agreement liabilities in spite of the U.S. position on the deal.

“It is their business, we are moving on in a consecutive way, as we have been doing. We are fulfilling the undertaken liabilities in a consecutive manner. And we have no plans to stop,” Khloponin said.

Belousov said: “It is clearly evident that without the U.S. participation, the Paris agreement will be invalid because the U.S. is one of the largest discharge producers.”

Russia is analyzing the possible impact of the U.S. decisions on the agreement, he said.

Energy Minister Alexander Novak said he sees no threat that all participants will start to withdraw from the climate agreement after the U.S.

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