The United States and China signed a joint declaration in which they say they are “determined to cooperate” in the face of the climate crisis

The United States and China issued a joint statement on Saturday saying be “committed to cooperate” on the pressing issue of climate change.

The text was published after a visit to Shanghai by the US climate envoy, John Kerry. “The United States and China are committed to cooperate with each other and with other countries to tackle the climate crisis, which must be approached with the seriousness and the urgency it demands, ”read the statement from Kerry and China’s special envoy for climate change Xie Zhenhua.

Washington’s goal is to prepare for the virtual climate summit, scheduled for April 22 and 23 at the initiative of the US president, who joined the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement after reaching the White House.

The joint declaration listed Multiple avenues of cooperation between the United States and China, the world’s two largest economies, which together account for nearly half of the greenhouse gas emissions responsible for climate change.

In the note, the authorities underlined improve their respective actions “and cooperate in multilateral processes, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement ”.

Kerry discussed environmental issues with her Chinese counterparts in Shanghai on Thursday during a senior U.S. official’s first official visit to China in more than 20 months.

Kerry – arrived in China on Wednesday as part of an Asian tour that will also take him to South Korea – He is the first US high representative to visit the country since July 2019, when Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, and foreign trade, Robert Lighthizer, went to Shanghai for a round of trade war negotiations between the two countries.

The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, met this Friday with French and Chinese presidents Emmanuel Macron and Xi Jinping to prepare for the summit of leaders on climate change convened by the United States.

The fight against global warming and protect biodiversity were the main topics of the telematic meeting, as German executive deputy spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer explained in a statement, who did not provide details of the conversation between the three leaders.

The United States returned to the Paris Agreement last February, after Biden overturned in one of his first steps the controversial decision to abandon it by his predecessor, Donald Trump..

Xi, for his part, has repeatedly reiterated that Such an agreement is “an irreversible process” and a “compass” for “strong action” on the climate, and that his country intends to “deploy unprecedented efforts to ensure the future of new generations”. and “intensify international efforts” in the fight against climate change.

The European Union has played for years to lead the fight against climate change, although this requires the complicity of the rest of the big polluters. The German statement also highlights that the three leaders spoke, among other things, about the pandemic, global supplies of covid-19 vaccines and the economic situation.

With information from AFP and EFE

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