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Hu's attitude at UN climate summit 'inspiring'

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-09-23 13:56

Chinese President Hu Jintao addresses the opening ceremony of the United Nations Climate Change Summit at the UN headquarters in New York Sept. 22, 2009. [Xinhua]

BEIJING: Chinese President Hu Jintao's statement at the United Nations climate summit Tuesday in New York on actively tackling global warming was a "sincere and inspiring" stance shown by the world's largest developing country, leading climate policy experts said Wednesday.

President Hu unveiled a number of climate targets and plans in his address to the UN climate summit opening session, including a promise China would cut carbon dioxide emissions per unit of gross domestic product by "a notable margin" by 2020 from the 2005 level.

Feng Fei, a senior research fellow at the State Council Development Research Center, one of China's top think tanks, said in an interview with Xinhua, "The inspiring stance from China will definitely influence the United States and other developed countries to speed up their action."

"Disputes between industrialized and developing nations won't disappear, but the pledge from China will be of much help in achieving a positive goal at the Copenhagen conference later this year," Feng said.

State and government leaders from about 190 countries will attend the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) December in Copenhagen, Denmark. The COP15 is expected to renew green house gases (GHG) emissions reduction targets set by the UNFCCC Kyoto Protocol, which are to expire in 2012.

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Qi Ye, a Tsinghua University climate policy expert, said China has set a good example ahead of the COP15.

"The government has combined measures including global warming awareness, emissions reduction targets and policy incentives, which obviously shows China is now thinking in a more sophisticated way on handling climate issues," Qi said.

Qi said it was a substantial change for China to incorporate plans addressing climate change into national planning for coordinated economic and social development.

"Climate change is now becoming really a national concern," Qi said, "I hope China's  political resolve and practical measures will encourage other countries."