US, China shock COP26 with joint climate action pact
The world’s two largest emitters announce a surprise initiative to deliver climate action in the ‘critical decade of the 2020s’.
China and the United States have announced a joint initiative at COP26 to deliver enhanced climate action in the coming decade, with a surprise show of cooperation between the rivals and the world’s two biggest greenhouse-gas emitters.
The plan is light on concrete targets but heavy on political symbolism at a conference that began with the US and China seemingly at loggerheads.
The announcement came as the crunch COP26 summit in Glasgow entered its pivotal final days, with negotiators wrestling over ways to limit global warming to 1.5-2 degrees Celsius from pre-industrial levels.
“Both sides recognise that there is a gap between the current effort and the Paris Agreement goals so we will jointly strengthen climate action,” Xie Zhenhua, Beijing’s longtime climate envoy told the summit.
China and US are the two largest emitters in the world and together account for nearly 40 per cent of all carbon pollution.
Xie said the plan would involve “concrete plans” for enhanced action this decade and that both the US and China were ready “to work on the finalisation of the Paris Agreement rulebook” at the UN climate summit in Glasgow.
A wording of the declaration that appeared online shortly after the announcement said both countries “recognise the seriousness and urgency of the climate crisis”.
“They are committed to tackling it through their respective accelerated actions in the critical decade of the 2020s,” the document said.
It said the US and China considered work to slash their emissions of methane - a potent greenhouse gas - this decade “a necessity”.
The 2015 Paris accord commits nations to work towards limiting global temperature rises to between 1.5C and 2C through sweeping emissions cuts.
Xie said that China and the US had carried out 30 virtual meetings over the course of the last 10 months to come up with the initiative.
“As the two major powers in the world, China and the United States have to take on the responsibility to work together with other parties to address climate change,” he said.
Joe Biden’s climate envoy, former Secretary of State John Kerry, told reporters the countries had committed to a series of “important actions” which would pave the way for future generations.
“The two largest economies in the world have agreed to work together to raise climate ambition in this decisive decade,” Mr Kerry said
“Our teams have worked together for months, and we have worked in good faith. We have found common ground.
“The steps we’re taking, we believe, can answer questions about the pace at which China is going and help China and the US and others be able to accelerate their efforts.”
The China-US joint action has suddenly put immense pressure on the Scott Morrison government to accelerate Australia’s carbon emission reductions this decade. During the Glasgow summit Australia has been missing from the pledges to reduce export and use of coal, pointing out that the United States has also bypassed that particular pledge. Australia was also missing from signing up to reducing methane gas.
But with the US sending such a clear signal, along with China, about the fresh urgency of the next few years in reducing global warming, Australia is looking increasingly isolated among its closest of allies.
Australians attending the summit have been shocked by the China-US move, believing that they had some “cover” for their own lukewarm efforts, because China president Xi Jinping was missing from the summit and the US was facing its own domestic problems in securing funding for climate change promises.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres tweeted that the US-China accord was “an important step in the right direction”.
Last week US President Joe Biden said President Xi had “walked away” from the climate crisis for skipping the COP26 summit.
China hit back at the time, but ties appear to have thawed ahead of long awaited bilateral talks next week.
“The release of this joint declaration shows that cooperation is the only choice for China and the US,” said Xie.
Delegates in Glasgow are negotiating how to implement the Paris Agreement temperature goals, in addition to how vulnerable nations can be helped to fight climate change.
The United Nations said that all countries emissions cutting plans, taken together, were currently set to warm Earth 2.7C by 2100.
The US-China deal comes as Boris Johnson told world leaders to “pick up the phone and give negotiators the space to manoeuvre’’ and agree to the most ambitious COP26 statement possible.
In a veiled criticism of Australia, as well as other nations like China, Brazil, and Saudi Arabia who have been less than forthcoming in agreeing to urgent new 2030 targets, the British Prime Minister said some countries were “conspicuously patting themselves on the back” for signing up to the Paris climate accord but doing too little at Glasgow to improve their offer.
Negotiators from 197 countries are currently debating the wording and emphasis of the “cover statement’ to be delivered at the end of COP26, possibly on Friday evening or over the weekend.
In the first draft, the seven-page document urges parties to “revisit and strengthen the 2030 targets in their nationally-determined contributions, as necessary to align with the Paris Agreement temperature goal by the end of 2022”.
The request for new targets are aimed at countries like Australia, China, India, Brazil and Saudi Arabia to have fresh short term plans on the table by the end of next year, which for Australia, falls after the general election.
The text also calls on countries to accelerate the phase out of coal and subsidies for fossil fuels. Australia will fiercely try and keep the current vague wording, which doesn’t set any time frames or specific targets on this point. Australia, like the United States, has refused to sign up to a pledge to phase out coal mining.
With AFP
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