China announces emissions cuts and will attend COP15

China's state council has boosted hopes of successful Copenhagen climate change talks by announcing emissions cuts and promising to attend the event.


The state government has promised to ‘reduce the intensity’ of carbon dioxide emissions in 2020 by 40 to 45% against 2005 levels.

A statement released today (November 25) said: “This is a voluntary action taken by the Chinese government based on its own national conditions and is a major contribution to the global effort in tackling climate change.”

China’s premier Wen Jiabao also said today he would attend the climate summit in Copenhagen, Denmark, next month, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.

Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said: “Mr Wen’s presence at the meeting fully embodies the Chinese government’s great attention to the issue and its political willingness to address the issue with international cooperation.”

Mr Qin added China had ‘actively engaged in international cooperation’, and regarded the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol as the major channels and basic legal framework for the international community to deal with climate change.

Luke Walsh

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