New climate plan signals stronger resolve, experts say

President Xi Jinping's announcement of an updated climate action plan under the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement underscores China's unprecedented ambition and steadfast commitment in addressing climate change, providing much-needed confidence to global climate efforts, experts said.

In a video speech to the United Nations Climate Summit 2025 held in New York on Wednesday, Xi said China will, by 2035, reduce economy-wide net greenhouse gas emissions by 7 percent to 10 percent from peak levels, striving to do better.

The country also aims to increase the share of non-fossil fuels in total energy consumption to over 30 percent and expand the installed capacity of wind and solar power to more than six times the 2020 levels, bringing the total to 3,600 gigawatts, he said.

By that time, Xi added, China's total forest stock volume will exceed 24 billion cubic meters, and new energy vehicles will dominate new vehicle sales.

China's national carbon emissions trading market will be expanded to cover major high-emission sectors, and a climate-adaptive society will be basically established, he said.

The targets Xi announced are inscribed in China's new Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs, part of a climate action plan under the Paris accord to cut greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate impacts.

Under the 2015 pact, which aims to keep the rise in global temperatures this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels while pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5 C, each party must establish an NDC and update it every five years.

Zhang Haibin, associate dean of Peking University's School of International Studies, said China's NDC update once again sends a strong and clear signal that the country is an active participant, contributor and trailblazer in global climate governance.

The announcement came at a time when climate governance is facing multiple internal and external challenges, heightening concerns and diminishing confidence in the international community, Zhang said.

He noted that within the global process, US President Donald Trump announced the US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement earlier in 2025 and adopted a series of policies opposing action on climate change, severely disrupting global governance and creating significant uncertainty.

He also pointed to adverse impacts from intensifying geopolitical conflicts and frequent international tensions. Such crises, including the Ukraine conflict, have diverted attention away from the climate challenge, reduced resources to address it and further undermined confidence in global climate governance, Zhang said.

"At this moment, confidence is incredibly important and valuable," he said.

In this context, China's new NDC shows its active stance and firm commitment to advancing global climate governance, Zhang said. "This move will significantly boost the international community's confidence."

A statement from the National Center for Climate Change Strategy and International Cooperation said the NDC update represents the first time China has proposed a comprehensive set of post-2030 climate targets that encompass the entire economy and aim for net reductions across all greenhouse gases.

China aims to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060.

The update also marks China's shift into a new developmental phase defined by more systematic and comprehensive low-carbon and resilient growth, the center said.

By 2035, China's net greenhouse gas emissions are projected to fall by more than 1 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent from peak levels, exceeding the combined reductions achieved by the US and the European Union in the five years after their respective peaks, it said.

Aligning with emissions reduction pathways required to limit warming to 2 C and 1.5 C under the Paris Agreement, the center said China's new NDC shows unprecedented ambition and strength, while guiding industrial and technological development over the next decade.

"China has also vowed to strive to do better when conditions permit. This reflects a more proactive and determined strategic resolve," the statement said.