China 'committed to fighting' climate change

(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-07-10 06:45

TOYAKO, Japan: The world has to fight climate change together but the responsibilities of the developed and developing countries in this battle has to be different, President Hu Jintao reiterated Wednesday.

Speaking at the Major Economies Meeting on Energy Security and Climate Change, he said global warming is the common concern of the world.

But the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change reflects the international consensus on the "common but differentiated responsibilities" of different countries, Hu said on the sidelines of the Group of Eight (G8) Summit.

He urged the world's major economies to play an exemplary role in meeting the needs of the UN convention and the Kyoto Protocol.

He suggested the major economies take forward international negotiations on climate change, and urged them to take the lead in carrying out practical cooperation.

The G8 has announced that it would cut its greenhouse gas emissions by half by 2050.

But the eight richest countries have not specified what the base year for the cut would be, making the target vague.

That's why the developing countries, including China and India, invited to the G8 talks, are not impressed. They want the G8 to reduce its emissions further because historically the richest countries are the world's biggest polluters and economically the most capable of adapting to the needed changes.

Hu reaffirmed China's pledge in the fight against global warming, and said it is determined to tackle the issue.

China has taken a series of measures that include saving energy and cutting emissions. It has set specific energy-saving targets, including reducing the energy consumption per unit of GDP by 20 percent by 2010, and increasing the forest cover to 20 percent. China is committed to meeting these targets, and is "ready to work with the rest of the world to achieve harmonious, clean and sustainable development", Hu said.

Xinhua