Xi: China will do its part on climate change

President Xi Jinping said on Sunday that China is willing to cooperate with other countries to tackle climate change during the process of implementing post-2015 development-agenda goals.

Xi said during a working luncheon on climate change at the United Nations in New York that China is willing to take on responsibilities that suit its national conditions, and that it will promote the South-South Cooperation climate-change fund to help developing countries deal with the issue.

Xi joined other leaders, including Ollanta Humala, president of Peru, host country of the 2014 climate change conference; Franois Hollande, president of France, host country of this year's climate change conference, and 30 other representatives.

Xi said that the Paris agreement will allow the international community to seek a new direction for green, low-carbon development. The climate talks should obey the principles and rules of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, he said, particularly the principle on common but differentiated responsibilities, which says that countries with different economic, social, and historical backgrounds should contribute according to their differences.

Developed countries should fulfill their obligations on funds and techniques, he said, following through with the commitment to provide $100 billion each year until 2020 for the Green Climate Fund and transferring climate-friendly techniques to developing countries.

China said in its intended nationally determined contribution submitted earlier this year that it will increase the share of non-fossil fuels in its energy mix by the year 2030, peak emissions by 2030, and reduce carbon emissions per unit of GDP by 60-65 percent by 2030 from 2005 levels.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a press briefing after the luncheon that the discussion was "fruitful" and that leaders "expressed their resolve to finalize a durable, meaningful agreement in Paris that applies to all countries".

Ban said that a Paris agreement and the 2030 sustainable development agenda are mutually supportive and "indispensible" for a transition to a low-emission climate.

"Leaders voiced broad support for a durable agreement that will accelerate investments in clean energy and spur a global, low-carbon transformation well before the end of the century, consistent with a below 2C pathway," he said.

Hong Xiao in New York contributed to this story.

amyhe@chinadailyusa.com