DPRK FM leaves for New York to sign UN climate accord

Ri Su Yong, foreign minister of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), left Tuesday for the UN headquarters in New York to join the signing ceremony of Paris climate agreement, according to the official KCNA news agency.

The report said Ri led a delegation to attend the signing ceremony and the high-level debate on achieving sustainable development goals, but did not elaborate on the schedule of Ri's visit.

Earlier this month, the UN Spokesperson's Office confirmed Ri's attendance but stressed that a reported meeting between Ri and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the sidelines cannot be confirmed.

More than 130 countries have confirmed that they will sign the Paris Agreement at the ceremony on Friday, according to the UN.

Agreed by 195 countries at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris in December 2015, the Paris Agreement sets a target of keeping the global average rise in temperature below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, and preferably below 1.5 degrees.

On the basis of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, developed countries agreed to raise 100 billion U.S. dollars a year by 2020 to help developing countries transform their economies. Endi