China willing to play its part on loss and damage, climate envoy says

But China later said this would not involve contributing cash

A man wears a face mask that reads "no climate justice without human rights" during a protest at the COP27 UN Climate Summit in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. AP

A presentation at the American University in Cairo Pavilion. Reuters

Egyptian artist Bahia Sheha stands inside her installation "Heaven & Hell in the Anthropocene." AFP

Akihiro Nishimura, minister of the environment of Japan, reviews notes with others at the COP27. AP

US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, right, and Xie Zhenhua, China's special envoy for climate greet each other at the COP27 UN Climate Summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. AP

Brazilian president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva poses for a group photograph with representatives of his country's indigenous people. AFP

People attend the COP27 UN Climate Summit in Sharm El-Sheikh. EPA

Activists dancing during a discussion on leaflets at the Cop27 climate conference, taking place in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. AFP

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From left, Rakia Amandou of Niger, Ba Aminata of Burkina Faso, Kenyan Rosemary Nenini, Fatima Mustafa Ahmed from Sudan and Djeneb Dicko from Burkina Faso at the Indigenous Peoples Pavilion. AP

Abdulla Nasser Musallam Al Rahbi, Oman's Ambassador to Egypt and Permanent Representative to the Arab League, speaks at the COP27 climate conference in Egypt's Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh. AFP

Climate activists demonstrate in the designated protest zone. AP

Sheikh Abdullah, Director General of Environment at the Public Authority of Kuwait, speaks at Cop27. AFP

Visitors at the Sharm El Sheikh International Convention Centre. AFP

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Mohamed bin Daina, right, Bahrain's Special Envoy for Climate Affairs and Chief Executive at the Supreme Council for Environment, at the conference. AFP

Members of Extinction Rebellion stage a protest at the Glencairn tidal pool outside Cape Town, South Africa to mark Cop27's 'Water Day'. AP

From left, Fahad Al Maskari of the Khalifa University, Frank Hartmann, Ghaleb Al Breiki of the UAE University, and Mouna Maroun of the University of Haifa, sign an agreement at Cop27. AFP

John Kerry, US special presidential envoy for climate, at Cop27 in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. AP Photo

Australian climate activists offer bananas to climate summit participants. AFP

Climate activist Sabrina Elba. AP Photo

Egyptian security forces stand guard during the protest. AFP

US President Joe Biden. AFP

Mr Biden with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi. AP

A Cop27 sign in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, provides the backdrop for this woman's selfie. Reuters

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah El Sisi speaks to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at the climate summit. AFP

A water wonderland greets this child at an acquarium in the Cop27 Green Zone. Reuters

Mr El Sisi, second left, takes part in a cycling marathon on the sidelines of Cop27. EPA

Rafael Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks in Sharm El Sheikh about 'complicated' talks to set up a protection zone around Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. AFP

Frankie the dinosaur. Reuters

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Reuters

Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan, CEO of the Alliances for Global Sustainability; Mariam Al Mheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment and Minister of State for Food Security; and Hatem Dowidar, group CEO at e&. AFP

Sameh Shoukry, Cop27 president, centre left, poses for photos in the youth pavilion. AP

A visitor looks at the 'Zero Point' series of collage portraits by Turkish artist Deniz Sagdic, each of which is made from a particular kind of upcycled waste material. Getty

Participants visit the Ukrainian pavillon. AFP

Mr Kerry speaks during a session on accelerating the clean energy transition in developing countries. AP

Youth climate activists. Pictured, from the left, Eric Njuguna of Kenya, Nicole Becker of Argentina, Vanessa Nakate of Uganda, Sophia Kianni from Iran, and Mitzi Jonelle Tan of the Philippines. AP

Muhammad Sulaiman Al Jasser, right, chairman of the Islamic Development Bank Group, poses for a photo with Mohamed Hadi Al Hussaini, the UAE's Minister of State for Financial Affairs. AFP

Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund. Bloomberg

A police officer stands at the entrance of the Sharm El Sheikh International Convention Centre during Cop27. Reuters

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres. AP Photo

Former US vice president Al Gore speaks during a session at Cop27. AP Photo

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China said it would be willing to contribute to a facility that compensates poorer countries for loss and damage caused by the effects of climate change, its climate envoy said on Wednesday.

Xie Zhenhua told reporters at Cop27 in Egypt that China had “no obligation” to contribute but was open to doing its part. However, a spokesperson from the Chinese delegation later said it would not contribute with cash, Reuters reported.

During the briefing, Mr Xie said China was happy to see “loss and damage” added to the UN climate forum's agenda for the first time and China itself had suffered from recent climate-linked weather events. He pointed to floods and drought this year that killed thousands. “That is a huge loss,” he said.

“China strongly supports claims from developing countries claiming loss and damages.”

Mr Xie added that China was also a developing country.

Speaking in China’s first media briefing on the summit, Mr Xie said he had informal contacts with the US and its climate envoy John Kerry during the summit despite ties being formally frozen since House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August.

He said he and his “friend of 25 years” Mr Kerry “never stopped personal communication and exchanged eight letters”. But he said responsibility lay with the US to come back to the table.

“At this Cop when we both arrived, we decided to maintain communications between the two delegations,” he said.

“Me and Mr Kerry both agreed to make joint efforts to support the Egyptian presidency. [But] the door is closed by them and we are trying to open it.”

The issue of loss and damage is quickly becoming a major issue of the summit in Sharm El Sheikh. The US and other richer countries had long resisted the establishment of such a mechanism in case they would be made liable for huge sums.

Mr Xie said during informal meetings Mr Kerry, he did not raise the issue of China paying loss and damage.

Responding to a question from The National on whether such a facility would be established at the summit, Mr Xie said China did not wish to “prejudge” the talks but would be studying “sustainable solutions”.

“If we can have a fund established at this Cop, China is happy to see that and will support that but it all depends on the negotiations.

“Now the biggest difference lies in that some countries want the fund to be about compensation and say clearly what are the responsibilities, but others are against it and they also have different opinions on the source of funds. China supports the positions of developing countries and hopes to find a good result through negotiations at this Cop.”

Mr Xie separately said the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, was not in town because of a busy domestic schedule and high-level visitors after the Communist Party congress.

“When you have guests at home you cannot just leave,” he said.