COP26: US President Joe Biden leaves with stern message for Chinese and Russian leaders

US President Joe Biden waves from Air Force One as he departs from Edinburgh Airport

US President Joe Biden left COP26 on Tuesday evening saying he felt the world leaders he met with "got a lot done" to help tackle climate change.

However, he had a strong message for the leaders of China and Russia who chose not to attend the conference, saying it was a "big mistake".

China is responsible for the most amount of the world's harmful emissions and Russia are also one of the top polluters.

Many leaders and environmentalists have criticised China's President Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, the Russian President, for not attending the important summit.

President Biden will leave behind some top negotiators to carry on the climate discussions

What did Biden say?

President Biden addressed the delegates, (people attending the conference), for the final time on Tuesday, saying he felt optimistic about the deals that had been made so far.

"We showed up... and by showing up we've had a profound impact on how the rest of the world is looking at the United States and its leadership role," he said.

He said many people viewed COP26 as a chance to "press the restart button" and praised the ground-breaking decisions they made on deforestation and methane emissions.

"I think we got a lot done" he said.

Mr Biden also praised "the passion and the power of the young people and the activists" who he said were in Glasgow "reminding us of our obligation to future generations".

Greta Thunberg (centre) has been very vocal whilst protesting in Glasgow. She believes more action needs to be taken but the leaders are not doing enough.

Why is he leaving COP26?

COP26 still has another nine days to go but many of the world's leaders have now left Glasgow.

However, they have all left strict instructions with their nation's representatives to carry on discussing new plans and ideas to tackle climate issues.

Mr Biden boarded his private plane, Air Force One on Tuesday evening.