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China and America must work together to tackle climate change, says US envoy John Kerry

  • ‘America needs China to succeed in slashing emissions. China needs America to do the same,’ said Kerry
  • China, the US and India are the world’s biggest emitters of greenhouse gases

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John Kerry delivers a policy speech in the Nash Conservatory at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London on Tuesday. Photo: AP
Associated Press
US climate envoy John Kerry called on China to join America in urgently cutting greenhouse gas emissions and described the international alliances that rebuilt Europe after the Second World War as a model for fighting against climate change.
Kerry challenged global leaders to accelerate the actions needed to curb rising temperatures and pull the world back from the edge of the abyss. “Allies, partners, competitors and even adversaries” must work together, he said on Tuesday during a speech at London’s Kew Gardens, a Unesco World Heritage Site where scientists are working to protect plants from global warming.

“The climate crisis is the test of our own times, and while it may be unfolding in slow motion, to some, this test is as acute and as existential as any previous one,” Kerry said. “Time is running out.”

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Kerry described the next decade as decisive, saying countries around the world must speed up efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions if they are to meet their commitment to limit temperature increases to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius (34.7 degrees Fahrenheit) over pre-industrial levels.

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US, China put aside differences for pledge to work together on climate change

US, China put aside differences for pledge to work together on climate change
While many countries have pledged to eliminate net carbon emissions by 2050, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says emissions must be cut by at least 40 per cent by the end of the decade to keep temperatures in check.
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Organisers of the next United Nations climate summit are calling the event later this year in Glasgow, Scotland “the world’s last best chance to get runaway climate change under control.” The primary goal of the meeting, known as COP26, is for countries to set “ambitious” targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

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