U.S.-China joint declaration of ‘surprise’ on climate change is just a word
▲ China’s special envoy for climate change, Xie Zhuan, holds a press conference at the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP26) held in Glasgow, UK on the 10th (local time). Glasgow/AP
As major fossil fuel producers such as China, India and Saudi Arabia protested against the plan to phase out coal, negotiations at the last minute of the 26th United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP26) are struggling, Bloomberg News reported on the 11th (local time).
The original draft of the COP26 statement included, for the first time in COP history, the phasing out of coal and the cessation of financial support for fossil fuels. However, as countries that produce and consume large amounts of coal such as China opposed it, the negotiations ran into a wall.
“Concerns over energy security have made China reluctant to support a plan to phase out coal,” a source said.
China plans to cut its carbon emissions after peaking in 2030, but is currently in an energy crisis and is pushing coal production to record levels.
At COP26, there was also a proposal to revise the climate change targets of governments by the end of next year, but China opposes it. From the point of view of China, the world’s largest carbon emitter, revising the target is a time-consuming task, but the logic is that it is unrealistic to readjust the plan in a short period of time until the end of next year.
The day before, China surprised the United States with a joint declaration of cooperation to promote concrete actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the 2020s. But China’s move shows that the declaration is just a word, Bloomberg pointed out.
India, the world’s third-largest carbon emitter, also opposed the statement saying it would “accelerate the phase-out of coal and other fossil fuel subsidies.” India also argued that developed countries should provide more financial support.
Saudi Arabia even denied these claims, facing criticism that it was obstructing the progress of the meeting at COP26 under the hood.
Twenty-two developing countries, including China and India, also expressed opposition to the draft, saying it lacked details on how rich countries could help poorer countries at risk from climate change.
Japan’s Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) said, “COP26 was scheduled to close on the 12th, but the theory of extension is emerging due to difficulties in negotiations.
Frans Thimermanns, vice-chairman of the European Commission for Climate Change, said at a press conference on the same day that “in the next few days we will know if we will live up to the expectations of the world”. expressed his intention to do so.
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