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Xi Jinping makes ‘big mistake’ by not showing up at COP26, says Biden
- Xi provided a brief statement to the COP26 conference on Monday instead of attending in person or pre-recording a video address
- Boris Johnson argues Xi’s absence does not mean that Beijing is ‘not engaging’ and says the delegation China has sent is ‘very high level’
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Chinese President Xi Jinping made a “big mistake” and damaged Beijing’s international standing by not showing up to the COP26 climate summit, US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday, as he sought to position Washington as a renewed leader of global climate action.
“I think it’s been a big mistake, quite frankly … with respect to China not showing up,” Biden said in Glasgow after days of meetings with other world leaders at the high-stakes climate conference.
“The rest of the world is going to look to China and say, ‘what value-added are they providing?’” Biden told reporters. “They’ve lost an ability to influence people around the world and all the people here at COP.”
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Xi, who has not left China since the outbreak of Covid-19, provided a brief statement to the COP26 conference on Monday instead of attending in person or pre-recording a video address. His written remarks called for an acceleration of global climate action, but offered no new specific measures or commitments by his government.
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First COP26 pledge: world leaders agree to end deforestation by 2030
First COP26 pledge: world leaders agree to end deforestation by 2030
“The single most important thing that’s got the attention of the world is climate,” said Biden. “It just is a gigantic issue and they’ve walked away. How do you do that and claim to be able to have any leadership now?”
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