China and the UK have a golden opportunity to embrace and
benefit from the challenges posed by global warming, British
Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett said over the weekend.
Beckett was in town as part of a whirlwind three-city tour,
itself part of a wider Asian tour, to talk about the future of the
world's environment and spearhead the first stage of a new era of
closer economic, political and technological cooperation between
the two countries, to help preserve that environment.
"China and Britain are two of the world's leading economies and
we believe that both countries can continue to grow without
destroying the resources required for future growth," Beckett
said.
"We see a strategy partnership between the UK and China and
Chinese cities, Guangzhou especially, as the way to tackle the many
issues we face, and by working together we can make the most of the
opportunities of the future.
"We don't believe we need to penalize ourselves while tackling
the issues of climate change. Effective solutions will help save
money as well as make money.
"That is why accompanying me on this trip is a delegation of
business leaders from the financial and technology sectors - the
types of companies that are an important part of the fight and with
whom Chinese companies can form close relationships.
"The economic record of Guangdong Province is outstanding and
has gone from strength to strength and we believe Guangdong
companies and UK companies can form close partnerships where
addressing climate change is a major goal," she said.
Since the release last year of a review of the impact of climate
change on the global economy by UK's leading economist, Sir
Nicholas Stern, pressure has been building on the world's leading
economies to take action, especially the US, and also those
experiencing rapid growth, namely China and India.
For its part, the UK will pursue policies that will move it
toward becoming a low-carbon economy, Beckett said.
"Two early tools that we can adopt, and that we believe a city
with a strong economy like Guangzhou has potential in following,
are greater energy efficiency and diversifying sources of
energy."
On a wider front, new foreign policies will need to reflect the
importance of dealing now with future problems that will threaten
countries around the world, she said.
"At the heart of every country's foreign policy is the security
and peaceful occupation of its homeland. Access to water, the need
for food supplies and land have always been a source of conflict
throughout history, and if nothing is done, we can see that global
warming will be the source of such conflicts in the future," the
foreign secretary said.
(China Daily May 21, 2007))
