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Meredith Chen

US climate envoy John Podesta will start a three-day visit to China on Wednesday as the world’s top two greenhouse gas emitters look to bridge gaps on key issues ahead of a United Nations summit in November.
Podesta will co-chair meetings with his Chinese counterpart, Liu Zhenmin, in their latest round of talks on climate change.
The two sides would “conduct in-depth exchanges of views on practical cooperation”, their domestic climate actions, and the multilateral process on climate change, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment said on Tuesday.


It is expected the two sides will discuss issues such as reducing global emissions and increasing funding for impoverished countries, according to China Environment News, the ministry’s news website.
Podesta’s visit comes amid a string of recent US-China diplomatic events and follows US national security adviser Jake Sullivan’s meeting with top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi last week.
Sullivan and Wang “underscored the importance of concrete steps to tackle the climate crisis and welcomed further discussions” during Podesta’s “upcoming travel to China”, according to White House comments on the meeting.
Despite tensions between China and the US escalating across various issues – including trade, technology, human rights and geopolitics – climate issues have consistently been considered important for tempering bilateral ties.
The meetings that start on Wednesday are expected to build on earlier discussions between the two countries, marking the second round of formal climate talks under a working group that was launched earlier this year.
Podesta and Liu met for the first time in their roles in Washington in May for initial discussions aimed at accelerating concrete climate action this decade.
They promised to work together to cut methane, the second-most abundant greenhouse gas. They also discussed cooperation to promote a successful UN Climate Change Conference, the COP29 climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan in November.
The talks are likely to be the last meeting between the climate envoys before the US election in November, which is poised to determine not only the next president but also the country’s stance on addressing climate-warming pollution.
Under President Joe Biden the US has sought to find common ground with China on climate change, a course that Democratic nominee Kamala Harris is widely expected to continue if elected.


However, Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, has threatened to escalate tariffs on goods from China and withdraw from the Paris Agreement, the cornerstone of global climate diplomacy.
Podesta replaced former special climate envoy John Kerry – the first dignitary to visit China in 2021 after Joe Biden took office – at the start of the year.
The two countries are developing new pledges that are due next year that outline emission cuts by 2035 under the Paris Agreement.


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US-China relations

Amid flurry of China-US talks, climate meetings to seek areas of ‘practical cooperation’

US climate envoy John Podesta (left) and his Chinese counterpart Liu Zhenmin will discuss “practical cooperation” during Podesta’s three-day trip to China this week. Photo: Reuters/Xinhua

Agenda for US-China talks includes Taiwan, South China Sea, Russia and AI

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan (left) and China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi (right) will meet this week. File photos: AFP

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (third from left) and US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan (third from right) leading their delegations in Bangkok on January 26, 2024, the last time they held face-to-face meetings. Photo: Xinhua 

Can China balance climate and energy concerns as it endures more extreme weather?

Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

Rescue workers evacuate residents on a flooded street after storms in Guilin, in southern China’s Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region in June. Photo: Agence France-Presse

China promises to help Fiji tackle climate change as Beijing seeks greater Pacific role

Fiji’s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka arrives at the Great Hall of the People for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Photo: AP

China and US pave way for Xi-Biden summit in Wang Yi-Jake Sullivan talks

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi gestures near US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan before talks at Yanqi Lake in Beijing on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and US national security adviser Jake Sullivan have held two days of talks in Beijing. Photo: Xinhua

Chinese companies eyeing US business expansion struggle to fill jobs in hostile climate

University students attend a recruitment fair hosted by Chinese consumer-electronics brand Midea at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston in July. Photo: SCMP

Midea Group office buildings in the city of Foshan in Guangdong province in February. Photo: Simon Song

Jason Hong, US general manager of REPT Battero, a Chinese battery manufacturing company, speaks at an undated event last year. Photo: REPT Battero

A large portion of the nearly 100 prospective job applicants attending the recruitment event at MIT were mainland students enrolled in Boston-area universities. Photo: SCMP

US congressman John Moolenaar, a Michigan Republican, has said he wants greater investment and more jobs in America but not if they come from a Chinese-owned company like Gotion High-Tech. Photo: Bloomberg

Mainland companies have taken cues on localisation from successful counterparts in places like Japan, which hired more than 1 millions Americans in the US, according to one recent study. Photo: Shutterstock

News

China

Diplomacy

Climate envoys John Podesta and Liu Zhenmin are expected to discuss global emissions and climate-related funding for less wealthy nations


Climate envoys John Podesta and Liu Zhenmin are expected to discuss global emissions and climate-related funding for less wealthy nations.
