US envoy Kerry calls for ‘urgent action’ on climate at China talks

AFP | Beijing                   

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

US climate envoy John Kerry held four hours of talks with his Chinese counterpart in Beijing yesterday, calling for “urgent action” as the two countries revived stalled diplomacy on reducing planet-warming emissions.

Climate talks between the two biggest greenhouse gas emitters came to a halt last year after Nancy Pelosi, then-speaker of the US House of Representatives, enraged Beijing by visiting self-ruled Taiwan, which China considers to be part of its territory.

Kerry, a former secretary of state, has enjoyed comparatively cordial and consistent relations with China despite Washington and Beijing locking horns over Taiwan and other issues. Kerry met his Chinese counterpart Xie Zhenhua in Beijing yesterday, with the two men speaking for around four hours, state broadcaster CCTV said.

Both countries “must take urgent action on a number of fronts, especially the challenges of coal and methane pollution,” Kerry wrote in a tweet after the talks.

“The climate crisis demands that the world’s two largest economies work together to limit the Earth’s warming,” Kerry tweeted. Beijing said after the talks that “climate change is a common challenge faced by all mankind”.

China would “exchange views with the United States on issues related to climate change, and work together to meet challenges and improve the wellbeing of current and future generations”, foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said.

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told CNN on Sunday Kerry would press Beijing not to “hide behind any kind of claim that they are a developing nation” in order to slow-roll efforts to cut emissions.

“Every country, including China, has a responsibility to reduce emissions,” Sullivan said. “And the world, I do believe, should step up and encourage -- indeed, pressure -- China to take far more dramatic action to reduce emissions.”

China has long used its official status as a developing nation to justify its high emissions, with Sullivan saying “there is more work for them to do on that front”.