China hopes the United States will honor its commitments to tackle climate change and will soon unveil a concrete plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said in a press briefing on Wednesday, commenting on President Joe Biden’s apology for the country’s withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement.
Earlier, US President Joe Biden, speaking at the climate conference in Glasgow (COP26), apologized to the international community for the decision of his predecessor, Republican Donald Trump, to withdraw the country from the Paris climate agreement.
“The United States, as the largest source of cumulative greenhouse gas emissions, must give due importance to its historical responsibility, ensure policy continuity, and take a leading role in fulfilling commitments to significantly reduce emissions,” the diplomat said.
He also noted that the United States should help developing countries in areas such as financing, technology and capacity building to help them improve their ability to respond to climate challenges.
“Slogans cannot replace action. We hope that the United States will release a concrete plan and roadmap to halve greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 as soon as possible,” he said.
At the same time, he expressed the hope that the United States will be able to guarantee that in the future they will not again retreat back in their climate policy.
In 2017, then-US President Donald Trump announced that Washington would end its participation in the Paris climate agreement. Joe Biden, who defeated Trump in the 2020 presidential election, signed a decree shortly after his inauguration to return the United States to the list of countries participating in the agreement.
The COP26 conference in Glasgow, Scotland takes place from 31 October to 12 November. According to the program of events, in parallel with the formal negotiations, the conference will focus on how all sectors of society and the global economy are driving ambitious climate action. During the summit, it is planned to adopt a number of documents on the issues of reducing greenhouse emissions and achieving carbon neutrality.