China committed to climate promises

By Li Jing (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-11-27 07:15

The country will not commit itself to a binding target in the reduction of greenhouse gases at the upcoming UN climate change summit in Poland but will continue its "unshakable commitments" to sustainable development, experts close to the negotiations said Wednesday.

China has already made tremendous achievements in combating climate change, and will continuously act as a responsible country in negotiations, Lu Xuedu, a senior official from the Ministry of Science and Technology, said.

"As it is still a developing country, China will not make promises on binding targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions," Lu told China Daily Wednesday.

About 190 nations will meet in Poland next week to discuss global strategies on climate change after 2012 when the Kyoto Protocol expires.

The Chinese delegation will consist of about 40 senior officials from different ministries, Lin Erda, a member of China's national climate change expert panel, said.

But Lu and Lin both agreed that the conference in Poznan is not likely to generate substantial results as a final agreement is expected to be worked out next year.

"The Poznan meeting will serve as a half-way mark in the negotiating process leading up to the Copenhagen meeting in 2009," Lu said. "So, I don't think there will be any concrete agreements this time."

They also said the Bush administration will present the US stance on climate change at the Poznan meeting and that will lower expectations.

Lin said China will stick to its "previously repeated stances" and "five principles" at the 12-day UN meeting.

Xie Zhenhua, vice-director of the National Development and Reform Commission, in charge of climate policy, reiterated China's five principles at the first Sino-Australian ministerial dialogue on climate change held in Canberra recently.

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and its Kyoto Protocol should be adopted as "major channels" in any future agreement on climate change, Xie said.

He also emphasized that there should be equal treatment in mitigation and adaptation, and the problem of financing and technology, which developing country parties are most concerned about.