ARAB TIMES, WEDNESDAY, MAY 19, 2021 INTERNATIONAL 7 Climate Cyclone Tauktae kills dozens in India NEW DELHI, May 18, (Agencies): In- the Gujarat coast as an extremely severe adrift Tuesday off the coast of Mumbai eas in Maharashtra and Gujarat states. S.N. Shift from Trump dia said on Tuesday that cyclone Tauktae cyclonic storm. Indian Prime Minister after a deadly cyclone struck the western Pradhan, director of India’s National Disas- killed at least 21 people and several others Narendra Modi had instructed all the con- coast. ter Response Force, said social distancing were injured in the western Indian states of cerned authorities in the state and central The navy said it has rescued 177 of the norms were being followed in evacuation Blinken ‘praises’ Biden Gujarat and Maharashtra and southern state governments to take all necessary measures 400 people on the two barges in the Ara- shelters and rescue teams were clearing de- of Karnataka. during a high level meeting last Saturday. bia Sea. Three warships, maritime patrol bris from affected areas. Press Trust of India said quoting offi - Teams of National Disaster Response aircraft and helicopters joined the rescue Both states, among the hardest hit by the admin climate policies cials from Gujarat that seven people were Force (NDRF), Air Force and Navy res- operations and were scouring the sea, the coronavirus pandemic, had scrambled disas- REYKJAVIK, Iceland, May 18, (AP): On a trip over- killed in cyclone Tauktae related incidents cued several stranded people as they were navy said. ter response teams, fearing the storm could shadowed by the crisis in the Middle East, US Secre- in the state as hundreds of houses, roads kept ready for operation. Both barges were working for Oil and endanger India’s fi ght against the virus with tary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday touted the and bridges were destroyed at the coastal The India Meteorological Department Natural Gas Corp., the largest crude oil and supply lines cut, roads destroyed and lock- Biden administration’s abrupt shift in its predeces- regions of the state. (IMD) had warned that the cyclone would natural gas company in India. down measures slowing relief work. sor’s climate policies as he visited Iceland for talks In Maharashtra, six people were killed touch Gujarat coast around 18th May with The company said the barges were car- Tropical cyclones are less common in with senior offi cials from the world’s Arctic nations. Monday but the state’s capital, Mumbai, was the wind speed ranging upto 175 kmph. rying personnel deployed for offshore drill- the Arabian Sea than on India’s east coast In Reykjavik for a meeting of foreign ministers of largely spared from major damage even as Five other states along the western and ing and their anchors gave away during the and usually form later in the year. Experts the eight members of the Arctic Council, Blinken her- heavy rains pounded the city’s coastline and southern Indian coast including Kerala, storm. say changing climate patterns have caused alded President Joe Biden’s return to the Paris climate accord and determination to combat climate change. high winds whipped its skyscrapers. Over Maharashtra witnessed to heavy rainfall, The cyclone has weakened, but the India them to become more intense, rather than Yet the worsening violence between Israel and the the weekend, the cyclone killed six people in strong winds and huge sea waves due to the Meteorological Department forecast heavy more frequent. Palestinians hung over the discussions. Blinken made Kerala, Karnataka and Goa states as it moved cyclone. rainfall for many parts of Gujarat and Ma- In May 2020, nearly 100 people died at least three phone calls on the along the western coast. Meanwhile, the Indian navy is working harashtra in the coming days. when Cyclone Amphan, the most power- matter from his Reykjavik hotel The IMD added that the cyclone Tauktae to rescue crew members from a sunken Ahead of the cyclone, about 150,000 ful storm to hit eastern India in more than a and discussed the issue with Ice- weakened around midnight after crossing barge and a second cargo vessel that was people were evacuated from low-lying ar- decade, ravaged the region. landic offi cials as a small group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators holding banners and fl ags pro- tested outside the meeting venue. As he did on his fi rst stop in Denmark, Blinken basked in praise from his hosts about the Biden administration’s rejec- tion of former President Donald Blinken Trump’s “America First” poli- cies that included withdrawing from the Paris climate accord, the UN Human Rights Council and the Iran nuclear deal, questioning the value of NATO and minimizing dangers posed by climate change. “There is no doubt, the policy change is very clear and we welcome that because the United States is the leader of the free world,” said Icelandic Foreign Minister Gudlaugur Thor Thordarson. He said Iceland was particularly grateful for the new approach as it relies heavily on the U.S. and other NATO allies for security and defense. Focused “We are very focused on reinvigorating our closest alliances and partnerships, and also our engagement in multilateral institutions, and being here really rep- resents both aspects of that effort,” Blinken said. He lauded Iceland for its strong support for human rights, climate change mitigation and the role it plays in NATO. The Arctic is warming faster than the rest of the world and has been particularly hard hit by rising sea levels from melting sea ice and glaciers. Trump had alienated Arctic countries and others with his dis- missal of the phenomenon and his withdrawal from the 2015 Paris agreement. Trump’s former Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, also stunned many in the environmental community at an Arctic Council meeting two years ago in Fin- land with a call for countries to embrace and harness climate change, particularly the opening of new sea lanes due to melting ice, for commercial gain. Blinken will tour several Icelandic geo-thermal energy sites later Tuesday before holding a series of bilateral meetings with other Arctic Council foreign ministers on Wednesday. Among them will be Rus- sian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in what will be the highest-level face-to-face talks between the two countries since Biden took offi ce. Blinken will see Lavrov amid a sharp deterioration in ties between Washington and Moscow sparked by Rus- sia’s buildup of troops along the border with Ukraine, cyberattacks, Moscow’s actions against dissident Alex- ey Navalny, and allegations that Russia interfered in U.S. presidential elections in 2016 and 2020. The two nations are also at odds over infl uence in the Arctic, with Russia insisting its large Arctic landmass makes it the pre-eminent power in the region. Blinken said his meeting with Lavrov would be an important opportunity to test the proposition that the US and Russia can work collaboratively on certain is- sues, like climate change, the Mideast, Iran and North Korea, despite bitter disagreements on others.