Reference News Network, September 26 report: The U.S. "New York Times" website published an article titled "How China Acts, So the Climate Issue Develops" on September 24. The author is the newspaper's commentator David Wallace-Wells. The article is translated as follows:

The landmark Paris Agreement seemed to herald a new era in climate politics. Ten years later, wealthy countries have mostly ceased to regard global warming as a political concern—they have also abandoned the spirit of global solidarity that had been the basis for setting climate goals.

However, renewable energy is still developing rapidly, largely thanks to the astonishing rise of China as a green industry giant. Last year, renewable energy accounted for about 93% of the world's new power generation capacity. And by July this year, 74% of existing wind and solar projects worldwide were built by China.

Certainly, considering that a global superpower has now dominated several major areas often carelessly referred to as "future industries," this is no longer just a story about climate action. (American futurist) Niels Gilman wrote in a suggestive article in Foreign Policy magazine this month: "The decarbonization agenda is not just about readjusting markets or industrial policies; it actually represents the crucible of a new geopolitical order."

Even purely from the perspective of climate politics, China's rise has made some observers in wealthy countries uncomfortable, because it makes the United States and Europe look like secondary players in a moral drama they have always considered a test of Western leadership. Now, they have to consider the possibility that this important energy transition for the world may be primarily driven by a competitor operating outside the Western power corridors.

How big is this initiative? In just the first six months of 2025, China's new solar power capacity exceeded the total historical solar power capacity of the United States by the end of last year, and was twice the total solar power capacity of the rest of the world during those six months.

A year ago, in a column reflecting on the astonishing scale of China's green industrial revolution, I asked: "What would happen if China no longer tried to save the world?"

This question had a bit of a humorous tone, because China is still moving in the right direction, and the deployment of renewable energy technologies is becoming faster and faster.

But in certain areas, over the past year, competitive mentality has given way to a kind of admiration.

Again and again, Americans who visit China return with awe and shock at the progress made there, especially in solar energy, battery technology, and electric vehicles. Similarly, they are amazed and shocked by the fact that Americans wanting to compete are far behind.

Alastair Marsh, a Bloomberg News reporter, wrote in a representative article: "Investors in the clean technology field have begun to openly state what they have long suspected: China's dominance has made key areas in the West unattractive for investment."

A investor, after visiting one impressive factory after another, told Marsh, "You will only realize that catching up is futile, you can't catch up at all." (Translated by Qing Songzhu)

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