COAL CALL: WEST ASKS CHINA TO DO MORE

UNITED NATIONS: The US and Britain have welcomed China’s promise to end funding for coal projects overseas, but voiced hope the world’s largest emitter would also do more at home on climate change.

President Xi Jinping told the UN General Assembly on Tuesday that China would stop backing coal overseas, all but drying up the world’s foreign assistance to the dirty form of energy in developing countries after similar announcements by South Korea and Japan.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, seeking to rally international support for strong climate action ahead of UN climate talks in Glasgow in November, on Wednesday voiced hope for a complete global end to coal by 2040.

“I thank President Xi for what he has done to end China’s international financing of coal and I hope China will now go further and phase out the domestic use of coal as well,” Mr Johnson told the General Assembly in New York.

“Because the experience of the UK shows it can be done.”

Despite China’s pledge on overseas assistance, it has kept investing in coal at home.

A US official said of Mr Xi’s move: “We welcome this announcement but we also recognise that more needs to be done.”