Cooperation between the United States and China on climate change is widely regarded as one of the few areas in which the two sides share common interests, but the two sides are now in the context of increasingly fierce competition and continued frosty diplomatic relations. Expectations of cooperation on climate issues are so high that some even argue that if the two sides reach a climate cooperation, it may even be called a modern version of "ping-pong diplomacy" between the United States and China.
According to The Diplomat, though, perhaps a more positive answer to the question from an economic perspective. From a business, economic, and trade perspective, U.S.-China cooperation on climate change is both a real and a long-term imperative, and it is in line with the basic logic of an open economy. From this point of view, the prospects for cooperation between the two sides are very broad.
Biden attended the opening ceremony of the United Nations Climate Conference on the 1st. (Image source: Associated Press)
The Biden administration plans to create huge industrial demand by adding photovoltaic power generation facilities on a large scale, fully promoting electric vehicles, and adding 500,000 charging piles. At the same time, China has industrial advantages in photovoltaic module manufacturing, rare earth mining and smelting, large-scale wind power equipment manufacturing, intelligent car networking systems, and advanced electric vehicle battery modules. Decoupling the U.S. from China would not only seriously impact the Biden administration's green goals, but would also waste limited global resources, leading to sharply higher costs.
If the United States wants to develop new industries from scratch, it will not only not help to develop environmental protection, but will increase resource consumption and carbon emissions. Therefore, there is an urgent need for the United States and China to cooperate in these related industries.
More specifically, U.S. demand for green development can be met by importing Chinese equipment and services without threatening U.S. national interests. In fact, in the green industry value chain, although China occupies a large advantage in manufacturing costs and labor, the United States also has its own strengths, such as key components, patents and design and other high value-added content.
Therefore, there are good reasons for enterprises on both sides to communicate with each other and jointly promote the realization of green development goals. In this sense, the United States and China have unlimited room for cooperation in addressing global climate change and accelerating the global green transition.
Overall, the prospects for cooperation in the U.S.-China relationship on climate change are complex. At the political level, the outlook does not seem to be very optimistic from the current relationship between the two sides. But at the economic level, cooperation between the two sides is absolutely necessary. If both sides can agree that business and entrepreneurship have the power to drive and even determine the course of history, then they can be prepared for deep cooperation on climate change. (End)
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