Washington There has not been so much agreement between the rivals USA and China for a long time. “As great powers of the world we have to accept our responsibility and work together,” said the Chinese climate commissioner Xie Zhenhua in Glasgow, where the UN climate conference is entering its final spurt.
“The two largest economies have agreed to increase their climate protection ambitions in this crucial decade,” underlined his American counterpart John Kerry. Both government representatives surprisingly announced a climate deal between Washington and Beijing in Glasgow. After months of intense conflict, this could mark the beginning of a phase of rapprochement.
Both countries are front-runners in terms of pollution: China emits 27 percent of global CO2 emissions, the USA follows with 13 percent. In a joint agreement, the two states are now committed to more coordination: among other things, by reducing methane emissions, protecting forests and gradually phasing out coal.
The US State Department published the three-page statement on Wednesday, which describes common intentions in many words – but it contains hardly any concrete figures. “We recognize the seriousness and urgency of the climate crisis,” it says in the paper. “We want to work on climate protection individually, together and with other countries, according to different national circumstances, and accelerate it.”
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New hope for the climate conference?
The initiative spread hope in Glasgow: António Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations, called the partnership “an important step in the right direction”. The conference is proving to be difficult; shortly before the summit’s final, there is no international consensus for ambitious, concrete climate goals in sight.
Perhaps the giants’ advance could have a motivating effect. Seven years ago, the then US President Barack Obama and the Chinese head of state Xi Jinping agreed on a short-term reduction in greenhouse gases. At that time, they paved the way for the 2015 Paris Climate Pact.
Given the geopolitical tensions, the current alliance is remarkable, said climate expert Thom Woodroofe of the Asia Society Policy Institute think tank of the New York Times. “But he’s not a game changer,” he added.
The agreement does not contain any new requirements for China to phase out fossil fuels earlier. So far, China has promised to reach its peak in emissions before 2030, but there is no fixed date. In addition, China committed itself for the first time in the paper to want to reduce methane emissions.
However, China does not want to sign a commitment with measurable values, which more than a hundred countries joined last week. Both the US and China are holding back on phasing out coal. Together with India, both countries rejected a commitment to phase out coal in Glasgow.
It remained open what the new climate cooperation means for ongoing sanctions. The US president has initiated a series of blockades against China, including alleged human rights violations in the Xinjiang region. Dozens of Chinese companies, for example from the solar and semiconductor industries, are on a black list that makes it difficult for them to access the American market.
Relations between Washington and Beijing had hit rock bottom in the past few months. The few bilateral meetings at a higher level were fraught with tension. The punitive tariffs on hundreds of Chinese export goods installed by Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump remain in effect under Biden.
Biden and Xi want to talk to each other soon
Washington and Beijing regularly clash on security issues, for example in the conflict over Taiwan. Washington is promoting a multilateral alliance against China, with the European Union being an important strategic partner. A planned supply chain cooperation, a tech alliance with the EU and a global infrastructure initiative: all of these initiatives aim to curb China’s economic and geopolitical power.
According to Special Envoy Kerry, climate protection has been one of the few topics on which the US and China have stayed in constant contact over the past few months. There have been around 30 meetings and conversations between him and Xie since Biden took office, Kerry said. He emphasized that Biden and the Chinese leader Xi would meet virtually in a timely manner. Xi has not left his country since the outbreak of the corona pandemic.
Not only had there recently been doubts about China’s climate ambitions, the credibility of the USA has also suffered. Biden moved into the White House after the Trump years as climate president, pushing for a global alliance to stop global warming. But his goal of a green U-turn is barely making any headway.
Last week, after a long struggle, the US Congress passed a 1.2 trillion infrastructure package that also invests in sustainable energies. But a larger mega-package that would promote climate protection in the long term hangs in the balance on Capitol Hill.
More: Coal phase-out, financial aid, forests – this has been achieved in Glasgow so far