The American envoy for the climate John Kerry met his counterpart Xie Zhenhua in Beijing on Monday, thus marking the resumption of dialogue on this subject between the two main polluters of the planet.
The two men had a meeting for four hours, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
“Climate change is a common challenge for all mankind,” said Mao Ning, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, when asked during a regular briefing.
China will “exchange with the United States on issues related to climate change and work with them to address the challenges and improve the well-being of current and future generations,” she added.
The climate dialogue was interrupted almost a year ago: China suspended it to protest against the trip to Taiwan of Nancy Pelosi, then speaker of the United States House of Representatives.
The atmosphere now seems to be the resumption of trade, even if Washington wants to display its firmness in this area.
John Kerry will call on China “not to hide behind the assertion that it is a developing country”, to diminish its commitment against climate change, indicated Sunday on CNN the national security adviser to the American president, Jake Sullivan.
” Responsibility “
“Every country, including China, has a responsibility to reduce its emissions,” Sullivan said, and “the world should encourage China even more, if not pressure it, to take much more drastic measures to reduce emissions. its broadcasts.
The second world economy “still has work to do in this area” and “Mr. Kerry will insist on this point during his trip to Beijing”, where he is until Wednesday.
In recent months, visits have multiplied from Washington to warm up diplomatic relations: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken came in June, then US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in early July.
Mr Kerry’s arrival, his third since taking office in 2021, comes at a time when the impact of climate change is particularly felt on the planet, with heat waves in many parts of the world.
The Biden administration believes the climate is one area where the two fiercely competing powers can cooperate.
“Common Determination”
“Mr. Kerry’s visit and the resumption of climate talks underscore the critical importance of coordinated efforts to tackle the climate crisis,” said Chunping Xie, senior fellow at the Grantham Research Institute of Climate Change and the environment.
“It also proves their shared determination to navigate a complex geopolitical relationship to promote the common good,” she added, in a written response to AFP.
The world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases – responsible for climate change -, China has promised to reach its peak in CO emissions2 by 2030, then carbon neutrality by 2060.
President Xi Jinping also assured that his country would reduce its use of coal from 2026.
The authorities, however, gave the green light in April to a further increase in coal-fired power generation capacity, casting doubt on whether it will meet its climate targets.
What to expect from this visit? “In terms of specific outcomes, one thing that I hope progress could at least be made on is the methane action plan,” Lauri Myllyvirta, senior analyst at the Center for Research on Methane, told AFP. energy and clean air.
Methane was the main subject of agreement in the two countries’ joint statement after the Glasgow climate talks in 2021.
But no significant progress has been made by China since, believes Ms. Myllyvirta, who judges that Beijing could “commit to achieving a more ambitious goal” in this area.
“But it will take more than a trip from Mr. Kerry to get there.”