Progress at this week’s UN General Assembly has left climate negotiators more hopeful for the COP26 summit in Glasgow, after significant climate commitments from both China and the US.
A surprise announcement from President Xi Jinping that China would end funding for international coal power plants, combined with a fresh pledge from President Joe Biden to double US climate aid, have injected a rare note of optimism into fraught climate negotiations, just five weeks ahead of the Glasgow summit.
The new funding from the US, which will contribute $11.4bn annually by 2024, was hailed by climate groups as a “welcome and much-needed” signal that would help to unlock some of the thornier negotiation issues at COP26.