Barack Obama has admitted he couldn't stay away from the COP26 summit despite no longer holding public office.
The former US president used a keynote speech in Glasgow to warn the world was still not doing enough to tackle the climate crisis.
Addressing the conference at the SEC on Clydeside, he insisted there had been some meaningful progress made during the first week of talks but more needed to be done.
And the Democrat called out China and Russia after their respective presidents declined to travel to Glasgow for COP26.
“Even though I’m not required to attend summits like this this any more, old habits die hard,” he said.
“And when the issue at hand is the health of our planet, and the world our children and our grandchildren will inherit, then you will have a hard time keeping me away.
“That’s why I’m here today.”
Obama warned: “When it comes to climate, time really is running out.
“You heard the same message from world leaders last week. Now that they’ve left, here’s what we can report: meaningful progress has been made since Paris.
“The agreements made here in Glasgow, thanks to so many of you – including my friend John Kerry, who is tireless with his team – thanks to your efforts here in Glasgow we see the prospect of further progress.
“What is also true is that collectively and individually, we are still falling short.
“We have not done nearly enough to address this crisis, we are going to have to do more, and whether that happens or not to a large degree is going to depend on you – not just you in this room, but anybody who’s watching or reading a transcript of what I’m saying here today.”
And the Democrat took a swipe at Donald Trump for his decision to withdraw the US from climate targets agreed in Paris six years ago.
“Some of our progress stalled when my successor decided to unilaterally pull out of the Paris Agreement in his first year in office,” he said.
“I wasn’t real happy about that.
“And yet, the determination of our state and local governments, along with the regulations and investment that my administration had already put in place, we were able to keep moving forward despite hostility from the White House.”
And he insisted the US met its obligations under the Paris Agreement despite the tenure of Donald Trump in the White House.
“Despite four years of active hostility towards climate science coming from the very top of our federal government, the American people managed to still meet our original commitment under the Paris Agreement,” he said.
“And not only that, the rest of the world stayed in the deal.
“And now, with President Biden and his administration rejoining the agreement, the US government is once again engaged and prepared to take a leadership role.”
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