ISLAMABAD — The United States on Monday formally invited Pakistan to theglobal climate summit, which is scheduled to take place virtually on April22-23.

The decision came days after the US extended the climate change summitinvitation to many countries, excluding Pakistan. As a result, thePakistani government led by Prime Minister Imran Khan came under severecriticism at home due to its claims that it was making special efforts tominimize the impact of the climate change on Pakistan.

There are reports that Pakistan had expressed reservations at the USdecision and argued that it was one of the most affected countries in SouthAsia on the climate change index, and had taken several steps to minimizethe climate change impact.

Now, after receiving a formal invitation from the US, Prime Minister ImranKhan has directed his Adviser on Climate Change Ameen Aslam to representPakistan at the virtual summit and highlight Pakistan’s achievement at theforum.

US President Joe Biden had announced a virtual global climate summit lastmonth, but had not invited Pakistan. He however invited Bangladesh andIndia to the event. The White House said in a statement the summit wouldtry “to galvanize efforts by major economies to tackle the crisis”.

“It will be a key milestone on the road to the United Nations ClimateChange Conference [COP26] this November in Glasgow [in the UK],” said theWhite House.

The summit brings together countries that are responsible for “80 percentof global emissions and global Gross Domestic Product” and “demonstratestrong climate leadership, the White House said.