Adherence to Paris accord key

"The top priority task now is to further focus on implementation of the Paris agreement on the basis of a comprehensive and accurate understanding of its targets and common but differentiated responsibilities," he said.

Zhao, also head of the Chinese delegation, made the remarks as some countries have called for more ambitious targets than the ones included in the Paris agreement by limiting the temperature rise this century to 1.5 C from preindustrial levels.

The 2015 Paris agreement, however, aims to limit the increase to 2 C while pursuing efforts to further curb it to 1.5 C.

"The key task for the conference is to put the finishing touches on rules governing the Paris agreement. A comprehensive and accurate understanding of the agreement, its articles, principles and targets is extremely critical for the success of the conference," he said later in an interview with China Daily.