China has unveiled its first absolute targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions, with President Xi Jinping pledging to reduce economy-wide net emissions by 7 to 10 percent from peak levels by 2035, multiple news outlets report.
The announcement was made on Wednesday in a video address to the United Nations Climate Summit in New York, where some 120 countries are also outlying their plans to tackle global warming ahead of November’s COP30 talks in Brazil. Xi’s stance on climate change contrasted sharply with US President Donald Trump’s, who recently described it as a “con job.”
In his speech, Xi said that transitioning towards green and low-carbon strategies was “the trend of our time.” He added that while some countries’ actions were counter-productive, “the [broader] international community should stay focused in the right direction.”
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Xi’s latest commitments under the Paris Agreement included raising the share of non-fossil fuels in total energy consumption to more than 30 percent, expanding wind and solar capacity to 3,600 gigawatts – over six times the 2020 level – and increasing forest stock to more than 24 billion cubic metres.
The president noted that China aimed for new energy vehicles to dominate the country’s auto market and that he would expand its national carbon trading system to cover major high-emission sectors.
Xi also called for “fairness and equity” when it came to expectations around developing countries’ roles in curbing global warming. He said that developed countries should take the lead in fulfilling emission reduction obligations while providing more financial and technological support to developing countries to do their part.
