China, India urges ‘balance’ in climate approach at SCO summit

Anjali Sharma

GG News Bureau

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK, 18^th Sept. China, India and the leaders of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization on Friday called for a “balance” between reducing carbon emissions and allowing poorer states to catch up with economically developed countries, in a joint statement on climate change adopted at the end of the gathering.

Chinese President Xi and the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a statement that they unanimously recognized the negative consequences of climate change and the need for urgent action, but called for increased investment in oil and gas production and exploration.

Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the group also slammed “coercive measures” to force countries into reducing emissions at a set pace, said countries “have the right to independently set national goals in the field of climate change prevention”.

The leaders of the SCO member states said in their joint statement that unilateral coercive measures violate multilateral principles, seriously undermine multilateral cooperation and collective and national efforts to address climate change, and weaken the ability of countries to address climate change.”

The SCO a Beijing-led group of states across Eurasia was meeting in the ancient Silk Road city of Samarkand in what was Chinese President Xi Jinping’s first trip abroad since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

SCO members account for around half the global population, the joint statement noted.

On Thursday, Iran signed a memorandum of understanding to become the ninth permanent SCO member, the statement said.

SCO leaders said they were calling for a “balanced approach between emissions reduction and development, supporting a fair transition” to a greener economy, the statement noted.

Russia, India and China have been accused in the West of not doing enough to address climate change, but argue that poorer and developing countries should be given more leeway to prioritize economic growth over climate issues.

SCO bloc also pushed back against calls for a wholesale move away from polluting fossil fuels in favor of cleaner renewable energy, the statement stressed.

“It is important to use the common and complementary advantages of fossil fuels and clean energy sources and, in this regard, to increase investment in the exploration and production of fossil fuels,” SCO members added in the joint declaration.