Xi Jinping will attend a US-led climate summit this week, bolstering hopes of co-operation between the world’s two largest greenhouse gas emitters despite tensions between Beijing and Washington, reported the Financial Times.
The two-day meeting, which will begin on Thursday, marks the first time the two leaders will participate at the same event since Joe Biden became US president.
China’s foreign ministry said Xi would give a speech virtually on the opening day of Biden’s summit. The decision followed a visit to Shanghai last week by John Kerry, the US climate envoy, during which Beijing and Washington agreed to co-operate to combat climate change.
“Evidently China is willing to show up at Biden’s party,” despite tense bilateral ties, said Dimitri de Boer, China head for ClientEarth, an environmental non-profit. He added that the decision sent a “very strong signal”.