Xi pledges new climate milestone
BEIJING/NEW YORK: With an eye on the climate crisis, China will no longer build coal energy plants abroad, President Xi Jinping said early on Wednesday at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), reiterating his pledge that Beijing will seek to peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.
During his video address to the UNGA, Xi said Beijing, instead of building coal-fired plants overseas, will support developing countries in the transition to green and low-carbon energy.
The Chinese president did not share details on how China would go about implementing the policy but, if put in place, it would restrict the financing of coal-fired plants in developing countries, which largely depend on coal to meet their power needs. “China will strive to peak CO2 emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060,” Xi said in his address.
“This requires tremendous hard work, and we will make every effort to meet these goals. China will step up support for other developing countries in developing green and low-carbon energy, and will not build new coal-fired power projects abroad,” he went on to say.
“We need to improve global environmental governance, actively respond to climate change and create a community of life for man and nature. We need to accelerate transition to a green and low-carbon economy and achieve green recovery and development,” the Chinese president said. Xi’s announcement at the UNGA followed similar moves by South Korea and Japan earlier this year, and UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres and US climate envoy John Kerry have urged China to follow the lead of its Asian counterparts, Reuters reported.
Kerry, who was in China earlier this month for climate change talks, welcomed Xi’s announcement, calling it a “great contribution” and a good