Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

In Landmark Climate Pledge, China Promises To End Coal Funding Overseas

In Landmark Climate Pledge, China Promises To End Coal Funding Overseas

Xi Jinping made his announcement at the UN General Assembly where US President Joe Biden promised to double Washington's contribution to countries hardest hit by climate change.

China will stop funding coal projects overseas, President Xi Jinping announced Tuesday, all but ending the flow of public aid for the dirty energy contributing to the climate crisis.

Xi made his announcement at the UN General Assembly where US President Joe Biden, seeking to show leadership in growing competition with China, promised to double Washington's contribution to countries hardest hit by climate change.

China is still investing in coal, reducing the impact of Xi's commitment, but it is by far the largest funder of coal projects in developing countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam, and Bangladesh as it goes on a global infrastructure-building blitz with its Belt and Road Initiative.

Xi vowed to accelerate efforts for China, the world's largest emitter, to go carbon neutral by 2060.

"This requires tremendous hard work and we will make every effort to meet these goals," Xi said in a recorded address.

"China will step up support for other developing countries in developing green and low carbon energy and will not build new coal-fired power projects abroad," he said.

China's announcement follows similar moves by South Korea and Japan, the only other nations that offered significant funds for coal projects.

The climate advocacy movement 350.org called Xi's announcement "huge," saying it could be a "real game-changer" depending on when it takes effect.

Helen Mountford, vice president for climate and economics at the World Resources Institute, said it was "a historic turning point away from the world's dirtiest fossil fuel."

"China's pledge shows that the firehose of international public financing for coal is being turned off," she said.

But she said that private investors needed to make similar commitments. And she noted that China itself is still stepping up coal, an industry with political clout in the Asian power as well as the United States.

On a visit to China earlier this month, US climate envoy John Kerry said the addition of more coal plants "represents a significant challenge to the efforts of the world to deal with the climate crisis."

China brought 38.4 gigawatts of new coal-fired power into operation last year -- more than three times what was brought on line globally.

Non-governmental groups in a letter earlier this year said the state-run Bank of China was the largest single financier of coal projects, pumping $35 billion since the Paris climate agreement was signed in 2015.

Biden promises more aid


China's promise comes as momentum builds ahead of a UN conference in November in Glasgow which aims to raise the ambitions of the Paris accord.

Support for action has been growing with the planet breaking record after record on high temperatures and witnessing devastating severe weather linked to climate change including fires, severe storms and flooding.

One key section of the Paris accord that has lagged behind is mobilizing the $100 billion a year promised for nations hardest hit by global warming.

Biden, who has put the environment high on his agenda after defeating his predecessor, climate change skeptic Donald Trump, said the United States will double its contribution.

"This will make the United States a leader in public climate finance," Biden said.

Experts said that the announcement would take the American contribution to approximately $11.4 billion annually.

British lawmaker Alok Sharma, who will preside over the so-called COP26 conference in Glasgow, hailed Biden's announcement and said: "We must build on this momentum."

Currently, two-thirds of the funding is for mitigation -- reducing climate change -- rather than adjusting to current and expected future changes, such as sea-level encroachment, more intense extreme weather events or food insecurity.

In another climate announcement at the General Assembly, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey would formally ratify the Paris agreement, which it earlier had only signed.

The developments amount to rare pieces of good news on the climate front following a slew of high-level scientific reports painting a bleak future picture, as the world's top polluters continue to spew greenhouse gases at alarming rates.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was "encouraged" by the "important" US and Chinese announcements but warned that far more needed to be done to address climate change.

Last week Guterres warned the world was on a "catastrophic" path to 2.7 degrees Celsius heating according to a new study by UN scientists.

The figure would shatter the temperature targets of the Paris climate agreement, which aimed for warming well below 2C and preferably capped at 1.5C above pre-industrial levels.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
×