LONDON, Sept. 4 (UPI) -- A British minister said Wednesday he'd express his deep concern about climate change during his first ever visit to the Marshall Islands.
British Foreign Office Minister of State Hugo Swire will represent the British government at a Pacific Island forum in the Marshall Islands. He said he'd help establish a culture of climate diplomacy during his two-day visit, which begins Thursday.
"I pay tribute to the Pacific Island forum's hosts, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, for selecting climate change as this year's theme," he added in his statement Wednesday. "The United Kingdom is at the forefront of global action to tackle climate change and I look forward to deepening our cooperation with Pacific partners in this area."
European Union Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard is representing the bloc at the forum this week.
"The Pacific region can count on Europe's climate cooperation and ambition," she said Friday.
European leaders are debating climate policies for 2030 that would expand on goals for emission reductions and renewable energy use for 2020.
Rising sea levels, which may be due to melting polar ice, are threatening low-lying regions like Micronesia and the Marshall Islands.
