Japan's parliament ratifies Paris cliamte agreement

TOKYO -- Japan has decided to ratify the Paris Agreement, an international climate agreement, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said following the Diet passed the legislation on Tuesday.

"Japan will submit its instrument of ratification to the Secretary-General of the United Nations on Nov. 8," said Abe.

The Paris Agreement, which was adopted at the climate change conference in Paris last December and entered into force on Nov. 4, is a global framework requiring members to set targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from 2020.

The agreement aims to hold the increase of global average temperature to "well below" 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and as close to 1.5 degrees Celsius as possible to significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change.

Japan has set its own national target of reducing greenhouse gas emission by 26 percent by fiscal year 2030 (April 1, 2030-March 31, 2031).

The prime minister pledged in a statement that Japan will continue to work toward emission reduction at the national level by expanding a nationwide movement to reduce its emissions and steadily achieve its goal.

"At the same time, Japan will proactively pursue the development of innovative technologies in the fields of the environment and energy so as to enable emission reduction without sacrificing economic growth," said Abe.

He also vowed to utilize Japan's environmental technology and experiences and steadily implement its commitment of implementing climate change-related assistance "at the scale of 1.3 trillion yen ($12.45 billion) in 2020 in developing countries," and contribute to emission reduction worldwide.

An annual UN climate conference began on Monday in the Moroccan city of Marrakesh, discussing how to implement the Paris Agreement. The first gathering of signatories to the new Paris Agreement will take place on Nov. 15 during the conference.