A Russian scientist warned on Wednesday that Western Europe and Russia's northwest are among the regions likely to be hard-hit by rising sea levels due to climate change.

Flooding will threaten North America, "and Western Europe faces a disaster similar to the Biblical Flood," Dr. Nikolai Zharvin, a geographer, said during a video linkup between Russian and Chinese scientists.

"Russia's northwest, Kaliningrad and St. Petersburg, will be under threat," he said.

Scientists have warned that the water released by melting glaciers and polar ice, along with the sea's thermal expansion, are likely to cause a significant rise in sea levels over the coming decades.

Tibet and Xinjiang in China's west will not be affected by rising water, but valleys in the Yangtze and Huang He river basins will be submerged completely, the scientist said.

The video linkup took place during the UN climate change conference, targeting a binding treaty to cut global carbon emissions, which began in the Danish capital on Monday.

BEIJING, December 9 (RIA Novosti)