The United States and China are expected to meet this year in Azerbaijan to discuss reducing methane emissions

Liu Zhenmin, China’s special envoy for climate change, succeeded Xie Zhenhua in the role. Photo: Bloomberg — Liu Zhenmin, China’s special envoy for climate change, succeeded Xie Zhenhua in this role. Photo: Bloomberg

“Both sides are committed to promoting bilateral cooperation and capacity building,” the statement said.

“They exchanged experiences and challenges regarding their respective climate policies and actions, with a view to meaningfully responding to the climate crisis and beyond. »

The United States also aims to reduce other greenhouse gases, the statement added, including the precursors of ground-level ozone and industrial nitrogen oxide, commonly known as nitro.

The former results from chemical reactions during the combustion of fossil fuels like gasoline and diesel, while the latter is widely used in the automotive industry to improve the performance of internal combustion engines.

The two sides also agreed to strengthen policy and technical exchanges to mitigate deforestation and accelerate urban transformation towards sustainable, low-carbon cities.

Washington and Beijing further pledged to “accelerate” efforts to reduce China’s coal consumption and meet the US goal of 100% clean energy production.

They agreed to meet again in Berkeley, California, on May 29-30 for a high-level bilateral event focusing on subnational climate action.

Amid statements projecting unity, the Podesta-Liu dialogue failed to reach agreement on the most controversial issues on the climate agenda, including the U.S. plan to raise tariffs on Chinese products. solar energy And electric vehicle Industries.

Testifying before the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo expressed his concern on the data that Chinese vehicles could collect on Americans.

Additionally, the Biden administration is reportedly preparing next week to announce new prices on Chinese electric cars, increasing rates from the current 25 percent to 100 percent.

Last month, U.S. authorities asked South Korean company Hanwha Q Cells to revoke an exemption under which cutting-edge solar panel technologies from China and other countries could be imported without tariffs, according to Reuters.

This action aimed to close loopholes exploited by the Chinese solar energy sector to avoid tariffs imposed by Washington on direct imports from China.

This followed the US Commerce Department’s pledge last August to impose import duties on Chinese solar panel producers who manufacture their products in Southeast Asia, allegedly to mask their origin and evade tariffs. American import.