(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-09-06 14:38

SYDNEY - China and Australia issued a joint statement Thursday, pledging to work together to address climate change and energy issues in ways consistent with each other's economic growth aspirations.

In the statement, the two countries expressed their satisfaction with bilateral cooperation on climate change and energy issues, particularly in the areas of coal mine methane recovery, energy efficiency, climate change science and agriculture.

China and Australia also attach importance to the role nuclear power, with suitable safeguards, can play in coping with climate change, noting that recent agreements between the two governments will enhance bilateral substantive cooperation, the statement said.

Both countries reaffirm their commitment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its objectives and principles and agree to enhance their dialogue and cooperation within the framework of the UNFCCC, it added.

In the statement, China and Australia also reaffirmed their commitment to the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, lauded the progress made since the partnership was established in Sydney in January 2006, and pledged to continue to facilitate relevant cooperation projects.

The two countries also vowed to promote the development, deployment and transfer of improved and cost-effective low-emissions technology under frameworks of regional and multilateral partnerships.

In addition, they committed themselves to advancing the APEC Energy Working Group agenda in key areas such as achieving energy security, promoting energy efficiency, expanding energy investment and facilitating trade.

The two countries further agreed to strengthen cooperation on sustainable forestry management in the face of climate change, particularly through the UNFCCC and under the Global Initiative on Forests and Climate.

Over the matter of forestry management, the Australian side said that it supports China's proposal for setting up an Asia-Pacific Network for Sustainable Forest Management and Rehabilitation, saying it has the potential to make a valuable contribution to the regional efforts to achieve sustainable forestry management and curb climate change.

The two countries welcomed the establishment of the Joint Coordination Group on Clean Coal Technology, believing it will enhance bilateral cooperation and make a major contribution to improving the economic and environmental performance of coal use globally. They promised to strengthen the important role of the Joint Coordination Group under which a series of projects will be undertaken.

The statement also mentioned a number of other projects that are under development in areas such as skills training to assess the geological storage potential for CO2, enhanced coal bed methane trials and solar thermal energy technology.

Both countries also welcomed the joint research under the China-Australia Special Fund for Scientific and Technological Cooperation, notably in the areas of air quality, climate change and renewable energy sources, and agreed to continue cooperation on coal mine safety.