US will not give concessions to China for action on climate change, says John Kerry
Jan 27, 2021
Washington DC [US], January 28 (ANI/Sputnik): The United States will not waiver on any of its grievances towards China in exchange for Beijing's action on climate change, US Climate Envoy John Kerry said on Wednesday.
"We have serious differences with China... [and] those issues will never be traded for anything that has to do with climate," Kerry told reporters.
Kerry cited intellectual property theft, access to the Chinese market and Beijing's forages in the South China Sea as among the issues.
However, Kerry said that climate is a standalone issue that requires international cooperation and that the United States has internal work to do in establishing its credibility on the issue abroad.
The United States and China are the world's largest carbon dioxide emitters, representing 15 per cent and 28 per cent of yearly emissions, respectively.
Despite both nations signalling the need for more actions, the United States and China are mired in a trade war that has seen bilateral relations plummet to their lowest point in decades. Reciprocally, Beijing has also frequently accused Washington of flouting international norms and rules in its effort to promote US national interests. (ANI/Sputnik)