China needs to be accountable for its greenhouse gas emissions and must urgently combat climate change, Premier Wen Jiabao said Monday.

Wen presided over the first meeting of a national group dealing with climate change and greenhouse gas emission reduction, the central government Web site and state television reported.

"The situation we are facing is very grim," Wen was quoted as saying. "So we must have a strong sense of crisis and urgency. The work is a test of the government's accountability and also the responsibility China should bear for the international community."

The reports did not give specifics on China's plan to protect the environment. Officials have said the country's efforts include energy conservation measures, increasing forest coverage and family planning policies that have slowed population growth.

China has a goal of improving energy efficiency in 2010 by 20 percent over 2005's level, but has also indicated an unwillingness to enforce mandatory emissions caps.

China signed the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, which caps the amount of carbon dioxide that can be emitted in industrialized countries. But China is exempt from emission reductions because it is considered a developing country, a situation often cited by the US for rejecting the treaty.