Experts see China filling a void if the US decides to pull back from Paris pact

Climate experts said China could be well-positioned to lead global efforts to tackle climate change should the US pull out of the effort.

With the new US administration appointing climate-science doubters to key positions in the government and Donald Trump having run his presidential campaign denying the possibility of climate change, European Union leaders and other climate officials have been voicing their concerns.

EU officials grappling with Brexit and the union's current weaknesses fear that a leadership vacuum would delay progress in the fight against global warming, and are turning to China to take on the role, according to Reuters.

"Europe will now be looking to China to make sure that it is not alone" in dealing with climate change, according to an EU official involved in climate talks.

Miguel Arias Canete, a top climate diplomat for the EU, will be traveling to Beijing at the end of March to possibly discuss cooperation in developing a cap and trade system for limiting gas emissions.

Joanna Lewis, professor of science, technology and international affairs at Georgetown University, said that China went from being a reluctant leader in climate negotiations to taking on a much bigger role in the whole process.

"In recent years we have seen China's role in climate diplomacy change dramatically - from a country that hid from any real commitments to a country that has adopted some of the most aggressive clean energy targets in the world," she said.

"China is already leading the world on clean energy technology investments and deployment, and is now well-positioned to encourage other countries to follow its lead," she said.

China, being the largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has been sending "a strong signal" that it still supports the Paris Agreement, based on remarks President Xi Jinping made at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos in mid January and a week later in Geneva, said Andrew Light, a senior fellow with the World Resources Institute.

Xi said that the Paris climate deal must not be allowed to fail or the world will continue to inflict considerable damage on the environment.

Light said there will be "greater expectation that the Chinese will not only lead by example with pursuing and achieving their own reduction target, but that they would actively work to try to embrace more of the green growth strategies for other countries as well."

And China can "use their considerable resources and influences to help other countries to grow without reliance on fossil fuels," said Light, who also directs the US-China Track II Dialogue on energy and sustainable development.

Haibing Ma, China program manager at the Worldwatch Institute, said that if the US were to withdraw, the EU and China can "stick together and can continue the momentum created by the Paris Agreement - or at least balance the vacancy created by the US' retreat - to make even more progress."

He said that if leadership meant contributing financially, China should have no problem taking on the role. If it meant committing to even more ambitious goals than what China has already pledged to, that might be more difficult.

China had pledged in 2015 to cut its greenhouse gas emissions per unit of GDP by 60 to 65 percent from 2005 levels.

amyhe@chinadailyusa.com