US, China to seek climate progress before Cop28
The United States and China, the world's two largest greenhouse gas emitters, said on Thursday that they will hold climate talks this weekend in California, raising new hopes for headway at the Cop28 summit in Dubai. The talks, on the eve of an expected US visit by President Xi Jinping, will take place at the Sunnylands desert resort where US climate envoy John Kerry will welcome his Chinese counterpart Xie Zhenhua from Saturday through Tuesday. The two sides will discuss "enhanced implementation and ambition and efforts to promote a successful Cop28," the US State Department said in a statement. Liu Pengyu, spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Washington, said the two sides "will have an in-depth exchange of views on promoting action and cooperation on climate change and supporting the success of Cop28 in Dubai." World leaders and climate negotiators will gather in Dubai from November 30 for the latest UN-led summit as record-shattering temperatures, rising wildfires and worsening disasters heighten alarm about the fate of the planet. Xi is expected to visit San Francisco this month for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, in his first meeting with Biden in a year. (AFP)