China has encouraged President Barack Obama to increase the U.S. offer to reduce carbon emissions, but their top climate envoy indicated a willingness to compromise at a U.N. conference in Copenhagen. Xie Zhenhua stated that China aims to play a positive role in the climate talks, emphasizing that a successful outcome relies heavily on an agreement between the United States and China, as they jointly account for 40 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Xie expressed hope that President Obama would make a concrete contribution to the Copenhagen conference, suggesting that it should go beyond the 3 percent cut proposed by Obama for 2020. Additionally, Xie mentioned that China would be willing to accept a target to halve global emissions by 2050 if developed nations increased their emissions reduction targets by 2020 and provided financial assistance to developing countries to combat climate change. We acknowledge the significance of having a long-term goal, but believe that a mid-term goal is more crucial in addressing the immediate issues. The deputy chairman of NDRC expressed interest in discussing an emissions target to reduce global emissions by 50% by 2050, with the hope that developed countries would reduce their emissions by 25-40% below 1990 levels by 2020. Earlier this year, during previous rounds of U.N. talks, China had advocated for a reduction of "at least 40 percent." Xie expressed a preference for a conclusive, legally binding agreement at the Copenhagen meeting, but stated that if this was not achievable, a deadline to finalize a comprehensive treaty by June would be acceptable. He dismissed a U.N. suggestion for expedited funding of $10 billion annually from 2010-2012 as inadequate.