热点英语新闻10：中美两国发布应对气候危机联合声明，达成六点共识

Sino-U.S.Climate Change Statement Signals Revived Cooperation by Two Biggest CarbonEmitters

中美两国发布应对气候危机联合声明，达成六点共识

envoy
n. 使者；全权公使
A messenger or representative, especially one on a diplomatic mission.

diplomatic rank 外交官衔
diplomat 外交官
ambassador 大使
envoy 全权公使
counsellor 参赞

例句
Our envoy was accredited to the new government.
我国已向该国新政府派遣了外交使节。

Marco Polo’s travelogue mentions that Kublai Khan sent envoys to Malgache.
马可波罗游记中提到忽必烈曾派使节到马尔加什。


geopolitical
adj. 地缘政治学的
Geopolitical means relating to or concerned with geopolitics, a study of the influence of such factors as geography, economics, and demography on the politics and especially the foreign policy of a state.

geopolitics n. 地缘政治学
geopolitician n. 地缘政治学者

词组
geopolitical analysis 地缘政治分析
geopolitical repercussions 地缘政治反响

例句
Geopolitical divisions are deepening, making conflicts more difficult to resolve.
地缘政治分歧日益加重，使冲突更加难以解决。

Early resolution of geopolitical issues would be beneficial.
尽早解决地缘政治学议题是有益的。


bilateral
adj. 双边的, 双方的
Involving two parties, especially countries.

unilateralism n. 单边主义
bilateralism n. 双边主义
multilateralism n. 多边主义

词组
bilateral agreement 双边协议
bilateral relation 双边关系

例句
The business council is aimed at balancing bilateral trade by expanding trade volume.  
商务委员会旨在通过扩大贸易规模来平衡双边贸易。

Local policies are favorable for bilateral investment.
当地的政策有利于双边投资。

Last week saw the US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry participate in a three-day visit to Shanghai where he met with his Chinese counterpart Xie Zhenhua. This was actually the first time a member of the Biden administration had made such an official visit to the Asian nation.

And as the Kerry’s stay in China came to an end, Washington and Beijing released a joint statement on how they plan to tackle climate change. This story is drawing attention in particular because it all comes ahead of a critical U.N. climate conference which is coming up later this year in Glasgow, Scotland.

So, getting to the statement. What exactly does it say?

According to the joint Sunday statement, the two nations will cooperate with each other as well as with other foreign governments to quote “tackle the climate crisis, which must be addressed with the seriousness and urgency that it demands.”  It adds that the two sides will “cooperate to promote a successful COP 26 in Glasgow, aiming to complete the implementation arrangements for the Paris Agreement and to significantly advance global climate ambition on mitigation, adaptation, and support.”

And there’s been a pretty positive reaction to the news. Zhang Jianyu, chief representative and vice president of non-profit Environmental Defense Fund’s China program, told Caixin that the statement serves as a sign that quote “Beijing and Washington both believe in climate change.” Zhang add endquote “We are hoping that China and the U.S. take bold actions.”

Meanwhile, Li Shuo, global climate policy advisor at Greenpeace, said the statement constituted a firm step despite the great geopolitical challenges

Ok, and why is this such a big deal?

Well for me, it's pretty obvious. One - the US and China are after all the world’s two biggest carbon emitters. So, whatever way they choose to draw up their climate policies, this is guaranteed to have global implications. As I am sure you’re well aware, one of the first things that former US president Donald Trump did after moving into the White House was to withdraw his country from the Paris climate agreement, so it's definitely now encouraging to see the country’s new leadership has declared itself to be much more committed to countering climate change.

And secondly, the symbolism also speaks volumes. After all, during the Trump era, bilateral relations really hit an all-time low. Many are interpreting this statement as a sign that the US and China have revived cooperation on these environmental challenges. So if the pair are able to agree on how to tackle climate change, then we may hope their geopolitical relations can improve in other key areas such as trade, the pandemic, tech developments. In other words, the very tricky issues over which the pair have often squabbled, especially during the Trump era.