Climate cooperation could redefine US-China ties: US Envoy

China and the United States could use climate cooperation to redefine their troubled diplomatic relationship and lead the way in tackling global warming, US climate envoy John Kerry has told China's top diplomat Wang Yi.

Kerry told Wang on Tuesday at Beijing's Great Hall of the People that talks could provide a fresh start for the world's two biggest greenhouse gas emitters, which have been mired in disputes over Taiwan and trade.

"Our hope is that this can be the beginning of a new definition of cooperation and capacity to resolve differences between us," Kerry said in a meeting room in China's legislative building.

"We are very hopeful that this can be the beginning not just of a conversation between you and me and us on the climate track but that we can begin to change the broader relationship," Kerry told Wang.

Wang described Kerry as "my old friend", saying they have "worked together to solve a series of problems between both sides". Kerry also referred to their previous work together, including on the Iran nuclear talks.

Kerry met with his counterpart Xie Zhenhua for nearly 12 hours at the Beijing Hotel on Monday. State Department officials declined to comment on the discussions. Wang praised Kerry and Xie for their "hard work" throughout the talks.

Urgent action

Kerry's third visit to China as US climate envoy marks the formal resumption of top-level climate diplomacy between the two countries. The former Secretary of State is the third top US official to visit Beijing in the past month.

While Kerry has sought to ring-fence climate issues from wider diplomatic disputes, Wang said during Kerry's previous visit to China in 2021 that climate could not be separated from broader concerns.

"From experience, if we work at it we can find the path again in ways that resolve these challenges," Kerry said on Tuesday. "The world is really looking to us for that leadership, particularly on the climate issue."

Kerry has called for "urgent action" by Beijing and Washington to tackle the threat of the climate crisis as the world's two largest polluters revive stalled diplomacy on reducing planet-warming emissions.

"Climate, as you know, is a global issue, not a bilateral issue. It's a threat to all of humankind," Kerry told Wang. "This is a matter of global leadership."

Wang, in response, underlined the need "for a healthy, stable, and sustainable Sino-US relationship".

"Cooperation on climate change is advancing under the overall climate of China and the United States, so we need the joint support of the people of China and the United States," Wang told Kerry.