President Xi Jinping told a U.N. climate conference that his country would seek to reduce emissions by at least 7 to 10 percent by 2035. Ukraine’s president appealed for more weapons to fight Russia and warned of the dangers of a new arms race.
China, the world’s largest carbon polluter, announced at the United Nations on Wednesday that it intended to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by at least 7 percent to 10 percent over the next 10 years, the first time Beijing has made such a strong commitment to halt global warming.
The Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, made the announcement by video at a U.N. climate summit in New York, where he said, “Green and low carbon transition is the trend of our time.” In an apparent reference to the United States, Mr. Xi added, “Some countries are against it.
China’s announcement came a day after President Trump called climate change “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world.” Mr. Trump also warned other countries to avoid renewable energy sources and vowed to continue to encourage oil drilling. The United States is not attending this week’s U.N.’s climate summit, deepening its isolation from the rest of the world on climate change.
The Chinese shift on its climate policy came on a day when the United Nations General Assembly was grappling with other problems.