beijing<u+2014>china<u+2019>s top climate negotiator called on republican u.s. presidential nominee donald trump to uphold a global carbon deal championed by the obama administration if he<u+2019>s elected. under the agreement, which goes into effect friday, the u.s. has pledged to cut net greenhouse gas emissions by 26%-28% below 2005 levels by 2025. china promises to peak its carbon emissions by about 2030. mr. trump has pledged to <u+201c>cancel<u+201d> u.s. commitments to cut these emissions if he wins the nov. 8 election. asked at a news conference on tuesday about how china would work with the u.s. on climate change if mr. trump was elected, xie zhenhua, china<u+2019>s special representative for climate-change affairs, said mr. trump could encounter significant opposition if he sought to abrogate the u.s. commitment, adding that the trend of limiting carbon emissions would continue to play out worldwide. <u+201c>i don<u+2019>t think ordinary people would agree if you were to reject that trend,<u+201d> mr. xie said. <u+201c>i<u+2019>m convinced, if it<u+2019>s a wise leader<u+2014>especially a political leader<u+2014>he ought to know that all his policies should conform to the trends of global development.<u+201d> the trump campaign did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. democratic nominee hillary clinton has pledged to uphold the agreement, reached in paris last year , describing climate change as an <u+201c>urgent threat.<u+201d> chinese leaders haven<u+2019>t stated a preference for either u.s. presidential candidate. both mr. trump and his rival have voiced criticism of china during their campaigns . the international agreement seeks to limit the rise in global temperatures to well below 2 degrees celsius and envisions a broad shift away from consumption of fossil fuels in the coming years. mr. trump, by contrast, has pledged to boost the u.s. coal sector and encourage domestic oil and gas output to create jobs at home. both the u.s. and china are needed for any climate agreement to succeed. the countries are the world<u+2019>s biggest carbon emitters. cooperation to secure a climate deal by u.s. and chinese leaders has been a rare bright spot in the countries<u+2019> diplomatic relationship. mr. xie was speaking ahead of the latest round of climate discussions among leaders, due to begin next week in morocco. he told reporters that china was particularly interested in making sure developed countries lived up to their promise to mobilize $100 billion per year in funding for developing countries by 2020. the latest discussions and uncertainty from the u.s. presidential election comes as china<u+2019>s economy is also slowing, making it easier for leaders to peak its carbon emissions. china<u+2019>s coal consumption<u+2014>which is closely correlated with total carbon emissions<u+2014>fell more than 3% last year. that led many experts to question whether china<u+2019>s target of capping emissions by 2030 was ambitious enough. china has defended in 2030 target, and mr. xie said tuesday that uncertainty remained over when coal demand in china would enter a permanent decline. <u+201c>it<u+2019>s still too early to tell whether china<u+2019>s coal consumption has peaked,<u+201d> he said. write to brian spegele at brian.spegele@wsj.com
china calls on trump to uphold global carbon deal  - wsj
brian spegele