"China's position is: support, but developed countries should bear the main financial responsibility."
On the local time of November 10, the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change officially opened. As the host country, Brazil announced the launch of the Tropical Forests Forever Fund (TFFF) and pledged $1 billion in funding during the previous days' climate summit.
This fund was first proposed and led by Brazil in 2023, with a target scale of $125 billion, combining sovereign and private sector investments, and its core aim is to provide annual incentives for countries that maintain the integrity of tropical forests.
According to a report from the Brazilian newspaper "Folha de S.Paulo" on the 10th, countries such as Indonesia, Norway, Portugal, and France have become the first donors, and TFFF has already accumulated $5.5 billion in committed funds. China has expressed appreciation for this initiative, but has not yet joined the list of donor countries.
The report cited sources involved in the negotiations who said that Chinese negotiators have informed Brazil that China generally supports the concept of the fund, but holds reservations regarding financial commitments. The core basis is the "Common but Differentiated Responsibilities" principle (CBDR), advocating that developed countries should play a leading role in global climate financing.
This principle was established when the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was adopted in 1992, clearly stating that developed countries should take the lead in addressing climate change. The reasons include that developed countries have emitted more greenhouse gases since the Industrial Revolution and bear historical responsibility for climate change; developed countries also have greater capacity in terms of funding and technology compared to developing countries.
At each climate conference, this principle has always been emphasized, but in recent years, some Western developed countries have attempted to blur or distort this core consensus, essentially to cover up their lack of progress in emissions reduction and delay in paying promised climate funds.
The report pointed out that this principle has long guided China's position in participating in international climate negotiations. China has always been cautious in investing in multilateral environmental initiatives, preferring to emphasize its own capabilities in domestic emissions reduction and technology transfer rather than directly providing financial support.
On the same day as the opening of COP30, the conference president André Corrêa do Lago stated in an interview that wealthy developed countries lack enthusiasm in addressing global warming. He called on more countries to follow China's leadership in the green energy field, rather than complaining about competition.
This Brazilian senior diplomat pointed out, "In a way, the decline in enthusiasm from the global North is due to the active actions of the global South. This trend has been ongoing for many years, but it has never been so widely noticed."
He specifically mentioned that although China is the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases, it is also the world's largest producer and consumer of low-carbon energy. More importantly, "the solutions brought by China benefit everyone, not just itself."
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1848477129192515/
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