China accuses US of not accusing the diplomatic ranks of climate change
On Wednesday, a senior Chinese official accused the US of holding back its word and guilt when it comes to tackling climate change as the tumultuous diplomatic debate between the world’s two largest economies shifts towards the environment.
The US State Department said last month that China has demonstrated a “conscientious disregard” for the quality of air, land and water and is endangering human health in the world as its greenhouse gases are causing the world’s worst and growing global warming.
But Washington cannot force other countries to take responsibility for their own environmental concerns, Li Gao, head of the climate change department of China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment, told a news conference.
“The United States is the country with the biggest greenhouse gas emissions and will formally withdraw from the Paris Agreement early next month,” he said.
The dispute is part of a broader dispute between the two sides, in which Beijing has repeatedly accused Washington of being “unilateral”, intimidating and failing to fulfill its global obligations, while emphasizing its multilateralism.
The United States began a three-year withdrawal process from the Paris Agreement in 2017 when President Donald Trump said the deal benefited Chinese businesses and crippled the US economy.
But last week, China’s foreign ministry said the United States was a “consensus breaker” and a “troublemaker” and did not fulfill its obligations to the international community.
After Trump accused Beijing of “rampant pollution” at the UN General Assembly in late September, his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping pledged to lead his country to “carbon neutral” by 2060 and take on a more important role in the fight against climate change …
The country’s commitment to zero emissions is part of efforts to strengthen its reputation as a responsible world leader, experts say.
“Xi Jinping’s statement … is a high-level political decision. This is a very important geopolitical consideration, ”said Li Shuo, climate consultant for the Greenpeace environmental group.
China’s diplomatic position has been undermined by allegations that its authoritarian political system has led to the cover-up of the COVID-19 outbreak, which has allowed it to spread throughout the world.
Ma Xie Zhenhua, special adviser to China’s Ministry of the Environment, said the system has “clear advantages” over its competitors on climate change.
“Some countries find it difficult to implement,” said Xie, who led China’s 2018 climate negotiation team. “Why? Because they are electoral governments and can only plan for four or five years, and after that I don’t know if they will. still in power. “
“The United States, for example: Obama is committed to many goals that have not been achieved since Trump came to power.”
However, critics of China’s “authoritarian environmental protection” say China may still find it difficult to achieve long-term climate goals.
“In the absence of the rule of law, authoritarian rulers have the final say, but their political agendas continue to evolve, making it difficult to maintain a coherent climate change agenda,” said Yangzhong Huang, author of Toxic Politics. looking at China’s Environmental Reports.
Reuters
