Lauding China's role, Asia Society head says multilateralism needed to confront climate change

Kyung-wha Kang, president of the Asia Society, emphasized on Friday the vital need for multilateralism to confront urgent global challenges and praised China's significant contributions to tackling climate change, underscoring its leadership in global environmental efforts.

The Paris Agreement, a landmark 2015 treaty, effective since November 2016, unites nations in the goal of limiting global warming to well below 2C, ideally 1.5C, above pre-industrial levels.

In a speech in Beijing, Kang, also former foreign minister of the Republic of Korea, warned that the window to achieve the 1.5C target is rapidly closing, urging immediate collective action to mitigate climate impacts and adapt to their consequences.

Expressing disappointment, Kang noted the United States' repeated withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, relinquishing its former leadership role in global climate efforts.

In contrast, she praised China's proactive stance, citing its focus on clean energy development, alignment of economic policies with long-term climate goals, and active support for international climate collaboration.

As the world's largest carbon emitter and a leader in green energy transition technologies, China's choices are "decisive for the global climate trajectory", Kang said, adding that its dual role underscores the critical impact of its policies and technological advancements on achieving the Paris Agreement's objectives.

Kang also noted that green growth has emerged as a key driver of China's economic growth and the country has played a pivotal role in the global shift to sustainable energy.

According to a report of Carbon Brief, a United Kingdom-based website dedicated to covering the latest developments in climate science, climate policy, and energy policy, clean energy technologies contributed over 10 percent to China's economic growth in 2024, generating sales and investments worth $1.9 trillion.

Kang also lauded Beijing's commitments to peak carbon emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060, describing them as a "very important turning point for the world".

Additionally, China's pledge to announce its 2035 Nationally Determined Contribution, covering all greenhouse gases and economic sectors, ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Belem, Brazil, signals its ongoing leadership in global climate action, she added.