Current location:Stellar Space news portal > health
Developed countries must face up to their responsibilities to address climate change
Stellar Space news portal2024-05-22 10:23:12【health】9People have gathered around
IntroductionBy Zhong Sheng (People's Daily) 11:20, July 15, 2023"If we persist in delaying key measures that are
"If we persist in delaying key measures that are needed, I think we are moving into a catastrophic situation," United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned after many parts of the globe were recently hit by extreme weathers.
However, developed countries have long ignored their responsibilities and failed to deliver on their promises, which undermined the current climate agenda. They have triggered dissatisfaction from the international community, especially the developing world.
Developed countries have historical responsibilities, legal obligations and moral responsibilities for climate change, making developing countries the biggest victims.
According to a recent study led by the University of Leeds and published in the UK journal Nature Sustainability, almost 90 percent of excess carbon emissions come from developed countries, including the United States.
However, developed countries are just making empty rhetoric and shifting the responsibility to the developing world. This is totally against the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva recently said that who polluted the planet in these last 200 years were those who made the Industrial Revolution, and for this, they have to pay the historic debt they have with planet Earth.
Developing countries have not seen enough sincerity from developed countries in coping with climate change. Climate finance remains a key to the global challenge.
The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement have made clear the responsibilities and obligations of developed countries to provide financial resources, while developing countries are encouraged to provide such support voluntarily.
The University of Leeds report indicated that developed countries could be liable to pay $170 trillion in climate reparations to low-emitting countries to ensure targets to curtail climate breakdown are met.
Guterres noted that adaptation needs in the developing world are set to skyrocket to as much as $340 billion a year by 2030. However, facing such a financing gap, developed countries have yet to deliver on their promise of mobilizing $100 billion per year for climate action in developing countries before 2020—a promise made 14 years ago, and to offer a roadmap for doubling adaptation finance.
Climate finance was a focus of the recent Summit for a New Global Financing Pact held in Paris. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, president-designate of the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, noted that there is a huge financing gap in coping with climate change and promoting sustainable development of the world, and the climate finance promise is "barely band-aids, or painkillers, to a problem that requires major surgery."
Over recent years, some developed counties have backpedaled their climate policies. Their fossil energy consumption and carbon emission, instead of decreasing, went up, affecting the global climate governance process.
The U.S. government has repeatedly stressed the importance of transparency, responsibility, and respect for international rules, but it has lacked continuous, consistent, transparent and responsible climate policies. It has failed to ratify the Kyoto Protocol and once withdrew from the Paris Agreement, becoming a saboteur of global climate governance.
Besides, the United States, under the disguise of promoting energy transition, invested hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars in subsidizing its domestic manufacturers via various unfair acts and administrative measures. It also built trade barriers against the green industries of developing countries by cutting their access to green technologies.
These acts blatantly violated the basic rules of the WTO, disturbed the industrial and supply chains of the global green industry, undermined the efforts of other countries to achieve sustainable development goals and went against the joint efforts of the international community to cope with climate change.
China has all along made efforts to promote ecological civilization and taken concrete actions on climate governance.
The country has announced its targets of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, under which it will make the biggest reduction in carbon emission intensity in the world and move from carbon peaking to carbon neutrality in the shortest time span in world history.
It has worked steadily to adjust the energy mix. Today, China has the world's largest installed capacity and power generation from wind and solar power, and leads the world in the output and sales of new energy vehicles.
A recent Bloomberg report pointed out that China is emerging as a leader on the most important predictor of the climate future - the speed with which clean energy is being deployed to replace fossil fuels.
Apart from following a green development path itself, China continues to deepen South-South cooperation on tackling climate change. It is doing its best to offer support and assistance for other developing countries to cope with climate change under the frameworks of the Belt and Road Initiative and South-South cooperation.
Tackling climate change is a mission facing all mankind. The international community should work together to build an equitable and effective global mechanism on climate change.
For climate change, a take-more-give-less approach based on a utilitarian mindset is in nobody's interest. The developed world should face up to its historical responsibilities, deliver on its promise as soon as possible, expand its support for developing countries in terms of finance, technology and capacity building, and work with developing countries to achieve concrete progress in global climate governance.
(Zhong Sheng is a pen name often used by People's Daily to express its views on foreign policy and international affairs.)
Address of this article:http://suriname.cassettedesign.com/html-788d799160.html
Very good!(91211)
Related articles
- At least 6 Egyptian women die after vehicle slides off ferry and plunges into Nile River
- Russia: Putin reappoints Mikhail Mishustin as prime minister
- Ireland beat Pakistan in a T20 for the first time
- Police prevent environmental activists from storming Tesla factory in Germany
- Guardians ruin Francisco Lindor's Cleveland homecoming, trip Mets 3
- Iraqi government asks the United Nations to wind down its political mission in the country
- Australian judge extends ban on X sharing video of Sydney bishop's stabbing
- Coroner who concluded 14
- Russia begins nuclear drills in an apparent warning to West over Ukraine
- WNBA set to tip off with spotlight on rookie class led by Clark, Reese and Aces' quest for 3
Popular articles
- At least 6 Egyptian women die after vehicle slides off ferry and plunges into Nile River
- A campaign ad by a South African party showing a burning flag is called treason by the president
- Angelina Jolie is accused of sabotaging her six kids' relationship with Brad Pitt
- Dozens injured in Argentina after train strikes boxcar
Recommended
Wayne Bennett, at 74, signs a 3
Everton drops appeal against Premier League points deduction after staving off relegation
PGA CHAMPIONSHIP '24: Capsules of 10 key players at Valhalla
Pandemic treaty: Countries struggle to plan to avoid mistakes made during COVID
Clark signs deal with Wilson Sporting Goods for signature line
Pandemic treaty: Countries struggle to plan to avoid mistakes made during COVID
The Latest
Japan defense chief urges higher security after drone video of warship posted on China social media
Links
- Martial Arts Enthusiasts Found Training Class for Local Children
- Products from Various Countries & Regions on Display at CIFTIS
- China Takes Solid Steps to Foster Stronger Sense of Community for Chinese Nation
- China's Subsistence Allowance Covers 14 Million Elderly Citizens: Ministry
- China's Pre
- Regulation Passed to Protect Great Wall's Oldest Section in East China
- Guizhou Achieves Progress in Economic Development, Poverty Alleviation
- China Launches Special TCM Initiative for Betterment of Public Health
- Children Enjoy Summer Vacation in Shenyang
- China to Have over 1,000 National Water Parks by 2025