World leaders pledge to cut methane and end deforestation

Leaders at the COP26 global climate conference on Tuesday pledged to halt deforestation by the end of the decade and cut greenhouse gas methane emissions to help slow climate change.

On the second day of the two-week summit in Glasgow, Scotland, rich nations took some overdue actions to deliver the financial aid promised to developing nations hardest hit by global warming.

The UN conference aims to maintain a falling target of capping temperatures at 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, to avoid greater damage than was already caused by greenhouse gases.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who hosted the event attended by nearly 200 countries, said he welcomed the latest steps but urged caution.

We must be careful to beware of false hope and not to think in any way of getting the job done, because it is not. «There is still a very long way to go,» he told a news conference.

More than 100 countries have joined efforts led by the United States and the European Union to cut methane emissions by 3 percent by 2030 from 2020 levels, which could represent a step in halting global warming.

US President Joe Biden rebuked Chinese President Xi Jinping for his decision not to attend in person.

«It’s a big mistake, quite frankly, for China — in terms of not having China,» Biden said at a news conference.

“The rest of the world is going to look at China and say what added value do they bring? And they have lost the ability to influence people all over the world and all the people here at COP, in the same way I would argue with respect to Russia.”

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China said Mr. Xi was not given the opportunity to give a video address, and had to send a written response instead. Mr. Shi did not make any additional pledges.

China was represented in Glasgow by chief climate negotiator Xie Zhenhua, who told reporters on Tuesday that «five years were lost» because Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the Paris Agreement and it was time to «act». Harder and catch up.»

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