UN Climate Summit in Glasgow: China and the United States sign a climate agreement

In terms of greenhouse gas emissions, the United States and China are the world’s largest polluters. But now the two want to work side by side on better climate protection with the long-term goal of climate neutrality.

China and the United States have agreed to do more to improve climate protection. Chinese Climate Ambassador Xie Zhenhua made the announcement at the UN Climate Conference in Glasgow, Scotland. Former Secretary of State John Kerry, the current US special envoy for the climate, also confirmed the deal.

The United States and China have intensified cooperation with each other and other allies to implement the goals set out in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. “Both sides have realized that there is a gap between the current efforts and the goals of the Paris Agreement,” Xie said. “As the world’s two great powers, we have a responsibility to work with other parties to tackle climate change.”

Greenhouse gas emissions should be minimized

The main goal of the Paris Climate Agreement is to control global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. But the UN. The United Nations currently estimates that global warming will increase by 2.7 degrees Celsius by the end of this century – in defiance of all the promises made by governments. Since October 31, delegates from about 200 countries have been discussing ways to better protect the climate at the 26th UN Climate Change Conference.

In a joint statement, the United States and China want to develop long-term strategies – focusing on reducing their own greenhouse gas emissions and eventually becoming climate-neutral, Xie said. For this purpose, there must be a constant exchange of options on how to further reduce the level of harmful emissions by 2020. In addition to the efforts being made in their respective countries, both states have agreed to promote the expansion of renewable energy in developing countries.

“An important step in the right direction”

Kerry stressed that the “only way” to deal with the climate crisis was to protect the climate. The United States and China are the two countries with the highest global emissions. Ahead of the climate conference, which officially concludes on Friday, China presented its revised climate goals. The People’s Republic aims to have a climate-neutral climate by 2060. Chinese President Xi Jinping did not personally attend the climate conference.

The United States and China have now announced revised targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2025. They originally planned to take this step ten years later. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres praised the agreement between the two countries. This is “an important step in the right direction”.