The Foreign Service Journal, October 2021

20 OCTOBER 2021 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL “The evidence is irrefutable: green- house gas emissions from fossil fuel burning and deforestation are choking our planet and putting billions of people at immediate risk,” Guterres said. The IPCC report, at more than 3,000 pages, was compiled by 234 authors, who reviewed more than 14,000 studies from around the globe. The world already has warmed by 1.1 degrees Celsius since the start of the 19th century, The New York Times reported in an article summarizing the report’s findings. “The internationally agreed threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius is perilously close,” Guterres said. “We are at imminent risk of hitting 1.5 degrees in the near term. The only way to prevent exceeding this thresh- old is by urgently stepping up our efforts and pursuing the most ambitious path.” The report’s authors say there is still time to limit climate change, if societ- ies make strong and sustained cutbacks in carbon dioxide emissions and other greenhouse gases. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, responding to the report, said: “It is essen- tial that all countries—in particular the major economies—do their part during this critical decade of the 2020s to put the world on a trajectory to keep a 1.5 degrees Celsius limit on warming within reach. “This is why the United States has committed to a 50-52 percent reduction in emissions from 2005 levels in 2030 and is marshaling the entire federal government to tackle the climate crisis,” he added. U.S. climate envoy John Kerry, a former Secretary of State, tweeted: “These extreme events will only become more drastic in the future—this is why we can- not wait. Now is the time for action, and Glasgowmust be a turning point in this crisis.” The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference is scheduled to take place Oct. 31-Nov. 12 in that city. Jonathan Pershing, the State Depart- ment’s deputy special envoy for climate change, said the IPCC report gives leaders some clarity about what kinds of efforts are required to tackle climate change. “And we have in the Glasgowmeet- ing an opportunity to bring countries together, a strong lead on behalf of the UK to drive that outcome, and I think a collective will as evidenced by the major economies in the G20 to move to that outcome,” he added. U.S. Lays Off Local Staff in Russia M eeting a final Aug. 1 deadline set by the Kremlin, the United States laid off 182 local staff and more than 100 contractors working for its diplomatic mission in Russia on July 30. The Russian decision to ban almost all non-American staff at U.S. diplomatic missions came in response to the U.S. expulsion of some Russian diplomats, the Associated Press reported. Only a few local employees are exempt from the ban, including security guards who work outside the gates of the U.S. compounds. In a July 30 statement, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said: “These unfor- tunate measures will severely impact the U.S. mission to Russia’s operations, poten- tially including the safety of our personnel as well as our ability to engage in diplo- macy with the Russian government. “Although we regret the actions of the Russian government forcing a reduction in our services and operations, the United States will follow through on our com- mitments while continuing to pursue a predictable and stable relationship with Russia,” he added. After the ban was announced, U.S. Embassy Moscow suspended most consular services. They are still providing American citizen services, prioritizing emergency cases, and processing a mini- mal number of immigrant visas. Scott Rauland, who served at U.S. Consulate General Yekaterinburg, told Foreign Policy that Russia’s move was a massive blow to U.S. diplomacy in Russia. “At the very least Russia has succeeded in hobbling our entire diplomatic infra- structure there for the short term,” he said. “For those consulates, it could take years to get them back and fully func- tional again.” U.S. Consulate General St. Petersburg has been closed since March 2018, as ordered by the Russian government. All operations at Consulates Yekaterinburg and Vladivostok are suspended indefi- nitely.