Joint Statement of the United States and the Russian Federation following the Third Meeting of the U.S.-Russia Climate Change Policy Dialogue Working Group

The third meeting of the U.S.-Russia Climate Change Policy Dialogue Working Group was held in Moscow on May 31, 2005. The purpose of the working group is to help intensify and strengthen the cooperation between the United States and the Russian Federation on global climate change.

The Russian Delegation was headed by Dr. Alexander I. Bedritsky, Head of the Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring (Roshydromet), and composed of officials and experts from Roshydromet, the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education and Science and the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade.

The U.S. Delegation was headed by Dr. Harlan Watson, Senior Climate Negotiator and Special Representative of the Department of State, and composed of officials and experts from the U.S. Department of State, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Agency for International Development, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the National Science Foundation.

The two sides exchanged information on their respective activities relating to climate change since their second meeting in April, 2004. They discussed the wide range of on-going cooperation, including cooperation in the framework of the International Polar Year, the Study of Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH), Russian American Long-term Census of the Arctic (RUSALCA), Trans-Siberian Observations into the Chemistry of the Atmosphere (TROICA), Sophisticated Atmospheric Arctic Observatories, North Eurasian Earth Science Partnership Initiative (NEESPI), and the GHG Inventory Program. They discussed the implementation and results of the USAID-funded technical assistance projects, including the municipal energy efficiency projects implemented under the ROLL program, as well as the sustainable use of wood waste for energy under the FOREST project.

The delegations also discussed their close on-going cooperation in advancing international science and technology partnerships, in particular the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum, the International Partnership for a Hydrogen Economy, and Methane to Markets Partnership, and highlighted the importance of close collaboration in the future.

The delegations welcomed the progress on a number of topics agreed to at the second meeting, including:

• Joint projects on research of the Arctic and Antarctic climate within the framework of the International Polar Year 2007/08;
• Development of the Roshydromet-NOAA project to create a joint Tiksi climate monitoring station;
• Developing a system of oceanographic observations in the Arctic;
• Detecting changes in climate state, climate variability and climate extremes;
• Collaboration of U.S. and Russian scientific organizations within the framework of the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment and SMIP2 project (Seasonal Prediction Model Intercomparison Project-2);
• Assessment and diagnostics of the Arctic climate calculation results with the IPCC models.

The two sides discussed the importance of upgrading and restoring monitoring stations in the Russian Arctic and agreed to develop a proposal and identify lead agencies for this work. They highlighted the importance of long-term monitoring on both sides of the Bering Strait and proposed a technical follow-up meeting to help ensure continued collaboration. They also agreed to examine the feasibility of publishing a joint compendium of U.S.-Russian cooperation on climate change science and research activities. Both sides will consult with their agencies involved in these activities and determine next steps for this work.

The two sides decided to continue climate change policy exchanges and to enhance their cooperative activities on climate change. The next meeting of the U.S.-Russia Climate Change Policy Dialogue Working Group will take place in the U.S. in early- to mid-2006.

Harlan L. Watson
Co-chairman,
Senior Climate Negotiator and
Special Representative
U. S. Department of State
May 31, 2005

Alexander I. Bedritsky
Co-chairman,
Head of the Federal Service
for Hydrometeorology and
Environmental Monitoring
May 31, 2005