Joint Statement between China and the United States! Determined to end plastic pollution

On November 15, China and the United States issued the Sunshine Land Statement on strengthening cooperation to address the climate crisis.

According to the statement, China and the United States decided to launch the "Working Group on Strengthening Climate Action in the 2120s" to carry out dialogue and cooperation to accelerate specific climate actions in the 21st century.

The working group will focus on the joint statement and areas of cooperation identified in the joint declaration, including energy transition, methane, circular economy and resource efficiency, low-carbon sustainable provinces/states and cities, deforestation, and other topics agreed by both parties.

Among them, specific actions for "circular economy and resource utilization efficiency" include: China and the United States are determined to end plastic pollution and will work with all parties to formulate a legally binding plastic pollution (including plastic pollution in the marine environment) international instruments.

The working group will exchange information on policies, measures and technologies to control and reduce emissions, share their respective experiences, identify and implement cooperation projects, and evaluate the implementation of the joint statement, the joint declaration and this statement. The working group is co-led by the climate change envoys of the two countries, and officials from relevant ministries and government agencies of the two countries participate in appropriate ways. Both sides agreed to restart the China-US Energy Efficiency Forum to deepen exchanges on energy conservation and carbon reduction policies in key areas such as industry, construction, transportation and equipment. China and the United States plan to restart bilateral energy policy and strategic dialogue, conduct exchanges on mutually agreed issues, promote track two activities, and strengthen practical cooperation. The two countries strive to each promote at least five large-scale cooperation projects in carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) in the fields of industry and energy by 2030. China and the United States plan to hold high-level events on local climate action in the first half of 2024. China and the United States, together with the United Arab Emirates, will invite countries to participate in the "Methane and Non-CO2 Greenhouse Gas Summit" to be held during COP28.

The full text of the statement is as follows:

Sunshine Land Statement on Strengthening Cooperation to Address the Climate Crisis

Recalling the meeting between President Xi Jinping and President Joseph Biden in Bali, Indonesia, China and the United States reaffirmed their commitment to cooperation and working with other countries to address the climate crisis. To this end, China’s Special Envoy for Climate Change Xie Zhenhua and the U.S. President’s Special Envoy for Climate Issues John Kerry held talks in Beijing from July 16 to 19, and in Sunshine Country, California from November 4 to 7, 2023, and issued the following statement:

1. China and the United States review, reaffirm and commit to further effective and sustained implementation of the April 2021 China-US Joint Statement on Addressing the Climate Crisis and the November 2021 China-US Glasgow Joint Declaration on Strengthening Climate Action in the 21st Century20s.

2. China and the United States recognize that the climate crisis has an increasingly significant impact on countries around the world. In the face of warnings from the best available scientific findings such as the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the two countries are committed to effectively implementing the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement, reflecting fairness and common but differentiated responsibilities. and their respective capabilities, taking into account different national conditions, and in accordance with Article 2 of the Paris Agreement, it is achievable to control the increase in global average temperature below 2°C and strive to limit it to 1.5°C, including efforts to maintain 1.5°C, and achieve this goal. Purpose of the Agreement.

3. China and the United States are committed to the effective implementation of the Paris Agreement and its decisions, including the Glasgow Climate Agreement and the Sharm el-Sheikh Implementation Plan. The two countries emphasized that the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the Convention is critical to meaningfully address the climate crisis during this critical decade and beyond. The two countries recognize that both countries play an important role in implementing the goals of the Paris Agreement and promoting multilateralism, both in terms of domestic response measures and joint cooperative actions. For the sake of current and future generations of humanity, the two countries will cooperate and join with other parties to the Convention and the Paris Agreement to face one of the most serious challenges in the world today.

4. China and the United States decided to launch the "Working Group on Strengthening Climate Action in the 2120s" to carry out dialogue and cooperation to accelerate specific climate actions in the 21st century. The working group will focus on the joint statement and areas of cooperation identified in the joint declaration, including energy transition, methane, circular economy and resource efficiency, low-carbon sustainable provinces/states and cities, deforestation, and other topics agreed by both parties. The working group will exchange information on policies, measures and technologies to control and reduce emissions, share their respective experiences, identify and implement cooperation projects, and evaluate the implementation of the joint statement, the joint declaration and this statement. The working group is co-led by the climate change envoys of the two countries, and officials from relevant ministries and government agencies of the two countries participate in appropriate ways.

5. China and the United States will focus on accelerating the following specific actions under the working group before and after COP28, especially practical and practical cooperation plans and projects.

Energy Transition

6. In the critical decade of the 2020s, the two countries support the efforts stated in the G20 Leaders’ Declaration to triple global renewable energy installed capacity by 2030, and plan to triple the 2020 level from now to 2030. We must fully accelerate the deployment of renewable energy in both countries to accelerate the replacement of kerosene, oil and gas power generation, so that it is expected that emissions from the power industry will achieve a meaningful absolute reduction after peaking.

7. The two sides agreed to restart the China-US Energy Efficiency Forum to deepen policy exchanges on energy conservation and carbon reduction in key areas such as industry, construction, transportation and equipment.to enhance adaptation effectiveness; provide early warning systems for developing country Parties; strengthen adaptation efforts in key areas (such as food, water, infrastructure, health and ecosystems);

——It should be noted that developed countries are expected to achieve a climate finance target of US$100 billion in 2023, and reiterated the urge for developed country parties to at least double the adaptation finance they provide; look forward to COP29 adopting a new collective quantified finance target; and make financial flows consistent with Paris objectives of the agreement;

- The proposal of the Transitional Council to establish financial arrangements to address loss and damage, including the establishment of a fund for this purpose, should be welcomed and appreciated;

- The important role of international cooperation should be emphasized, including that the global nature of the climate crisis requires the broadest possible cooperation, which is a key enabler of strong mitigation actions and climate-resilient development.

25. China and the United States are committed to further strengthening dialogue and collaborative efforts and supporting the UAE, the UAE chair, to successfully host COP28.