London [UK], April 22 (ANI): UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Thursday that President Joe Biden's announcement to commit the United States to a roughly 50 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 is a "game-changer" for the world.

Opening the ongoing Leaders Summit on Climate, Biden said that the US would aim to halve greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, according to 2005 levels.

"The commitment from @POTUS today to cut US emissions by 50-52% by 2030 is a game-changer. It will have a transformative impact in the global fight against climate change," Johnson wrote on Twitter.

Later in the afternoon, the UK prime minister addressed the leaders' summit and stressed that taking measures to combat climate change would also create jobs and growth for the global economy.

"It's vital for all of us to show that this is not all about some expensive politically-correct green act of bunny hugging, or however you want to put it ... this is about growth and jobs, and I think the president [Biden] was absolutely right to stress that," Johnson remarked, as reported by Sputnik.

The prime minister also said that it was possible for countries to grow their economies at the same time as reducing carbon dioxide emissions, citing the UK economy's 73 per cent growth since 1990. Over the same period, the UK has cut carbon dioxide emissions by 42 per cent, Johnson added.

During the summit session on Thursday afternoon, several other prominent global leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, also expressed their commitment to take further steps to tackle climate change.

According to CNN, Merkel welcomed Biden's commitment to cut his country's greenhouse gases by as much as 52 per cent by 2030.

''The national contribution of the United States for 2030 is a clear illustration of your ambitions and is a very clear and important message to the international community," Merkel said on Thursday during a virtual climate summit of world leaders.

Merkel also welcomed the fact that the US is back to being a global partner in tackling climate change.

''I am delighted to see that the United States is back -- is back to work together with us in climate politics because there can be in no doubt about the world needing your contribution if we really want to fulfil our ambitious goals," the German leader said.

She reiterated that Germany has already reduced its emissions by 40 per cent -- compared to 2019 -- and said that the EU will be climate neutral by 2050.

'We want to have at least 55 per cent less emissions by 2030 compared to 1990," Merkel said. (ANI)