Todd Stern, the US special envoy for climate change, had one aim on arrival in Copenhagen last week: to get tough on China.
He started immediately after stepping off the plane. “I do not envision public funds, certainly not from the US, going to China,” he told his first press conference, dismissing what has been an important Chinese demand for rich countries to fund its efforts to clean up its industrial sector.
The change of tone was stark. For the past year, developed countries have taken pains to praise China lavishly in public. Mr Stern told a conference this year: “China is doing a lot [on cutting emissions], but doesn't get credit for it, and should.”