India and China on Friday came up with a joint document on climate change and asked the developed countries to raise their pre-2020 emission reduction targets, and also honour their commitment to provide $100 billion per year by 2020 to developing countries. The document, unveiled after the talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, came as a surprise to many as both countries earlier have taken positions on climate change which were not always on the same side. The joint document comes ahead of the crucial UN climate conference in Paris later this year. It said the two countries recognise that climate change and its adverse effects are the common concern of the mankind and one of the greatest global challenges of the 21st century, which needs to be addressed through international cooperation in the context of sustainable development. [related-post] As the two biggest developing countries, China and India are undertaking ambitious actions domestically on combating climate change through plans, policies and measures on mitigation and adaptation despite enormous scale of their challenges in terms of social and economic development and poverty eradication, the joint statement noted. “China and India are fully engaged in their domestic preparations for their respective intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs) in the context of the 2015 agreement and will communicate their INDCs as early as possible and well before the Paris Conference,” it said. They decided to further “promote bilateral partnership on climate change and enhance the role of this partnership in their overall strategic cooperation partnership through the implementation of this joint statement”. They stressed that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its Kyoto Protocol are the “most appropriate framework” for international cooperation for addressing climate change. “They reaffirm the principles of equity and common, but differentiated responsibilities and call for the leadership of developed countries in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and providing finance, technology and capacity building support to developing countries,” it said. The two sides said that they would “work together, and with other parties, to advance the multilateral negotiations to achieve a comprehensive, balanced, equitable and effective agreement under the UNFCCC in 2015, with a view to ensuring the full, effective and sustained implementation of the UNFCCC.” The joint document said the 2015 agreement shall be in full accordance with the principles, provisions and structure of the UNFCCC, in particular the principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, reflecting different historical responsibilities, development stages and national circumstances between developed and developing countries. The 2015 agreement shall address mitigation, adaptation, finance, technology development and transfer, capacity building and transparency of action and support in a comprehensive and balanced manner, it said. “The two sides stress the equal importance and urgency of implementing the outcomes of the Bali Road Map in order to increase the pre-2020 ambition and build mutual trust amongst countries. The two sides urged the developed countries to raise their pre-2020 emission reduction targets and honour their commitment to provide $100 bn per year by 2020 to developing countries,” it said.
