TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
China calls on countries to uphold Paris commitment
Change Size
Organizers stand in front of a conference center at the COP22 village, a day before the opening ceremony of the conference in Marrakesh. The climate conference started on Nov. 7 in the Moroccan city. (AP/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
C
hina said on Wednesday that it remained committed to the Paris agreement amid concerns about US climate commitments in the post-Barack Obama administration.
China's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Liu Zhenmin said people should become more united to realize the landmark agreement as the global pact came into force this year.
The international community has voiced fears of a US withdrawal after the surprise election victory of Donald Trump, who called climate change a hoax during his campaign and promised to boost coal and oil industries.
"Countries and people all over the world hope the US will continue. As the largest economy in the world, US support for the agreement will be essential," he said.
US President Barack Obama vowed to cut emissions by 26-28 percent to below 2005 levels by 2025 and laid out domestic regulations to materialize the country's action plan.
Obama will hand the administration to president-elect Trump in January.
UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon and French President Francois Hollande have called on Trump to drop his campaign pledge to annul the Paris deal and "respect" the commitments that were made.
Liu said China would not be easily taken by Trump's campaign promises and would wait for the new US administration's climate policy.
But whatever the US decided, he said China would maintain its commitment and support the Paris agreement, especially in financing climate action.
Countries are currently preparing rules and mechanisms to put the Paris agreement into action during the Marrakesh climate change conference. (evi)
