Finance
EU holds back on signing climate action pledge with China, FT says
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on July 7, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Quick Summary
The EU delays a climate pledge with China, seeking stronger emission commitments before a summit marking 50 years of diplomatic ties.
EU Delays Climate Action Agreement with China Ahead of Summit
(Reuters) -The European Union is holding back on signing a joint climate action pledge with China at a summit this month to mark a half-century of diplomatic ties, a top climate official told the Financial Times in remarks published on Monday.
The EU's climate targets are among the world's most ambitious, but they have been based entirely on domestic emissions cuts. Now it faces a mid-September deadline to submit a new 2035 climate target to the United Nations.
Brussels has refused Beijing's repeated requests for a mutual climate commitment after the summit of the world's second- and third-largest economies, unless China promises to do more to cut greenhouse gas emissions, EU officials said.
"There is only merit in having a declaration from our perspective if there are also content nuts to be cracked and ambition to be displayed," Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra told the paper.
China, which has been struggling to strike a balance between fostering economic growth and reaching environmental goals, is expected to miss a five-year goal for an 18% cut in carbon intensity by the end of this year.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report, and the European Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Dheeraj Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Tom Hogue and Clarence Fernandez)
Key Takeaways
- •The EU is delaying a climate action pledge with China.
- •The EU seeks stronger emission commitments from China.
- •China is expected to miss its carbon intensity reduction goal.
- •The EU faces a deadline for a new climate target submission.
- •The summit marks 50 years of EU-China diplomatic ties.
Frequently Asked Questions about EU holds back on signing climate action pledge with China, FT says
1Why is the EU hesitant to sign a climate action pledge with China?
The EU is holding back on signing a joint climate action pledge with China because it wants China to commit to more significant greenhouse gas reductions.
2What are the EU's climate targets based on?
The EU's climate targets are among the world's most ambitious, but they have been based entirely on domestic emissions cuts.
3What deadline is the EU facing regarding its climate targets?
The EU faces a mid-September deadline to submit a new 2035 climate target to the United Nations.
4What has China struggled with in terms of climate goals?
China has been struggling to balance economic growth with environmental goals and is expected to miss its five-year target for an 18% cut in carbon intensity.
5How did the European Commission respond to the report?
Reuters could not immediately verify the report, and the European Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
