Chinese official says integrity, fairness remain major principles of COP22

Moroccan Foreign Minister and COP22 President Salaheddine Mezouar (L) and French Minister for Environment Segolene Royal launch the opening of the UN Climate Change Conference 2016 (COP22) in Marrakech, Morocco, November 7, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

MARRAKECH - The integrity and fairness should remain the major principles of the 22nd Conference of Parties (COP22), a senior Chinese official said here on Monday.

Xie Ji, deputy chief of Chinese delegation to COP22 in Marrakech of Morocco, made the remarks and expected all the parties could reach a consensus for the implementation of the Paris Agreement.

As the first UN climate change conference after the Paris Agreement which took effects three days ago, the COP22 kicked off on Monday morning, and around 20,000 participants from the globe will discuss in the next 11 days on the details related to execution of the Paris Agreement.

While negotiating on some technique and procedure issues, Xie said developed countries and developing ones show different attitudes and positions, underlining that only insisting the principle of "common interest and different responsibility" could cover the interests of all the parties.

As the biggest developing country, China is playing a model role on the reduction of greenhouse gas emission, he stressed.

China makes great positive efforts to reduce its emission and initializes the green and carbon-low development mode.

The State Council, China's Cabinet, issued last Friday a five-year plan to reduce greenhouse gas emission and showed its ambition by targeting the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP by 18 percent compared with that in 2015 by the end of 2020.

Meanwhile, China would continue to help developing countries to cut their greenhouse gas emission and improve their abilities of handling climate changes, especially climate disasters.

"We have a concrete program to help our developing partners. We will help build up ten carbon-low demonstration zones, launch 100 projects to cope with climate changes and reduce greenhouse gas emission, and offer over 1,000 training places in China," said Xie, adding that the main objective of China is to make its contribution, as a country of responsibility, to deal with the human's challenge.

According to a report published by World Bank, 57 percent of the energy savings achieved between 1990 and 2010 were contributed by China.

"That's a fair comment on China's efforts," said Xie.