COP26: With caution, welcome the surprise US-China climate agreement.
Activists and politicians cautiously welcome the unexpected US-China declaration promising to strengthen climate cooperation. The European Union and the UN called the move encouraging and essential, but Greenpeace said both sides needed concrete action.
They said they would work together to meet the 1.5°C temperature target set out in the 2015 Paris Agreement.
Scientists say limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C will help humanity avoid the worst effects of the climate. This is comparable to pre-industrial temperatures. Although the latest pledge lacks detail, analysts say China tacitly acknowledges that the crisis requires urgent attention and will play a more significant role in tackling global challenges.
The announcements of the two global rivals were made on Wednesday at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, which officially ends on Friday.
US President Joe Biden also his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping are expected to hold a virtual meeting as early as next week. According to China's climate commissioner, the declaration was agreed upon after about 30 meetings with the US in the past ten months.
He pledged to work closely together to reduce emissions, while the joint working group would "meet regularly over the next decade to address the climate crisis."Responses to the surprise deal have been primarily positive, but experts and activists warn that action must now be taken to back up the promise.
Genevieve Maricell, director of US climate policy at the advocacy group WWF, said the announcement offered "new hope" that the 1.5-degree Celsius limit could be reached. But he added: "We also need to be clear about what is still needed if both countries are to ensure the necessary emission reductions over the next nine years."
Greenpeace International Executive Director Jennifer Morgan has warned that China and the United States must be more committed to meeting climate goals. "The current geopolitical situation between China and the United States is terrible, so the fact that you can get this ... Washington-Beijing deal now [important]," he said.