China Promotes Green Leadership at Davos as Trump Returns to Global Stage

Since President Donald Trump’s first election, Chinese leaders have repeatedly used the backdrop of Switzerland’s snow-capped mountains and retreating glaciers to present a global vision centered on green development a sharp contrast to the US leader’s long-standing climate skepticism.

That contrast is set to sharpen further as Trump arrives in Davos on Wednesday, where he is expected to deliver a major speech at the World Economic Forum. The gathering has already been noticeably subdued on climate issues this year.

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng used his address on Tuesday to reinforce Beijing’s green credentials, urging global cooperation with China and its clean-technology exporters to accelerate efforts to curb emissions.

“We invite enterprises from all over the world to embrace the opportunities from the green and low-carbon transition, and work closely with China in such areas as green infrastructure, green energy, green minerals and green finance,” He said.

He, who has led trade negotiations with Washington over the past year, also sought to preempt growing global concerns over China’s record trade surplus, particularly in green technologies such as solar panels, batteries, and electric vehicles.

“China will pursue green development and share with the world the opportunities,” he said.

Over the past year, Beijing has taken steps to ease tensions and push back against a wave of trade barriers targeting its green exports. Measures include lowering tax rebates for solar and battery shipments, negotiating minimum price thresholds for EV sales to the European Union, and shifting more green manufacturing capacity overseas.

China’s upcoming five-year plan will continue to prioritize green development, reflecting the rising contribution of its solar, battery, and electric vehicle sectors to economic growth, especially as the country grapples with a prolonged downturn in real estate, He said.

Despite being the world’s largest greenhouse-gas emitter, China is showing “firm resolve and maximum effort” to meet President Xi Jinping’s first-ever pledge to reduce the country’s absolute emissions, according to the vice premier.