US climate envoy Kerry meets with pope on climate crisis

John Kerry, President Joe Biden’s climate envoy, has met in private with Pope Francis

VATICAN CITY -- John Kerry, President Joe Biden’s climate envoy, met privately with Pope Francis on Saturday, afterward calling the pope a “compelling moral authority on the subject of the climate crisis” who has been “ahead of the curve.” The former U.S. Secretary of State told Vatican News that the pope's embrace of climate issues “hopefully can push people to greater ambition to get the job done.” Kerry is visiting European capitals to strengthen cooperation on climate change ahead of the next round of U.N. climate talks in Glasgow this November. Kerry said United States, the second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases after China, must take a lead in cutting emissions and be joined by other big emitting countries.