US President Joe Biden will not attend climate summit

It has been reported that China and the US, the world's two largest carbon emitters, will hold a joint meeting on reducing greenhouse gases at the United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference (COP28) to be held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

According to a report by The New York Times citing sources familiar with the matter, US President Joe Biden does not plan to attend the COP28 climate summit.

Biden is expected to be in the US until Thursday, when he is scheduled to meet with the President of Angola in Washington, according to his official schedule. White House spokesperson Angelo Fernandez Hernandez said in a statement on the matter, "We do not have any travel updates to share for the President at this time." There has been no official statement from the White House regarding Biden not attending the conference.

Xia Yingxian, Director of the Department of Climate Change at China's Ministry of Ecology and Environment, stated in an interview with the online newspaper "The Paper" that they want to strengthen dialogue and cooperation with the US on key issues regarding climate change.

Xia, who will serve as the deputy head of the Chinese delegation to COP28, stated that they will hold a joint meeting with the US delegation at the conference to reach a consensus on energy transition and the control of non-carbon dioxide greenhouse gases, such as methane.

Xia expressed their hope that the conference "will bring all parties together for a successful global stocktake."

The annual meeting, where guiding decisions on climate change are made, will be held this year from November 30 to December 7.

SUNNYLANDS ACCORD

The consensus between China and the US, the world's two largest carbon emitters, is seen as critical to the success of global efforts to combat climate change.

US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry and China's Special Envoy for Climate Change Xie Zhenhua decided to reactivate the climate cooperation working group between the two countries following meetings held in China and the US.

In a joint statement issued on November 15 following 4 days of talks in Sunnylands, California, Kerry and Xie announced that the two countries had agreed to work together to "increase renewable energy capacity globally by 2030" and to "accelerate the substitution of coal, oil, and natural gas."

As part of the agreement, it was stated that both countries would include the control of non-carbon dioxide greenhouse gases, such as methane, in their 2035 plans for reducing carbon emissions. China made a commitment regarding the control of methane gas for the first time as part of its emission reduction strategy. The countries also decided to jointly fight against forest loss and plastic pollution.

According to International Energy Agency data, China was the country with the highest carbon emissions in 2022 with 12.1 gigatons, followed by the US with 4.7 gigatons.

The Beijing administration aims to reduce carbon emissions starting from 2030 and to become "carbon neutral" by 2060 as part of its climate goals.

News Source: 12punto