Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam's commitment to net-zero emiss🥂ions shows the strong political determination of the country in stepping up economic transformation to contribute to solving the climate crisis, said Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha.

Vietnam's commitment to net-zero emissions

Vietnam is one of the countries most affected by climate change and has a large annual total of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (ranked 21st in the world and 2nd in ASEAN). Therefore, the Party and State leaders, especially the Prime Minister, are very interested in directing Vietnam's participation at the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) held in Glasgow, Scotland (the UK), the minister said. According to him, Vietnam's commitments at the Climate Summit were highly valued by leaders of countries around the world for strong determination and practicality. Vietnam has emphasized the responsibility, ethics, and awareness of organizations, collectives and individuals on climate change and environmental protection. Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh proposed that climate change response and nature restoration must be the top priority in all development decisions as well as the highest ethical standard of authorities at all levels, sectors, businesses and citizens. These represent the vision of the Government leader for Vietnam’s future socio-economic development. It guides future development investment activities to realize the goal of turning Vietnam into a developed country with high income by 2045 as set out in the Resolution adopted at the 13th National Party Congress. PM Chinh affirmed that responding to climate change cannot be done by any single country, and he called for cooperation among countries to achieve the common goal, Minister Ha said. In a meeting with Vietnamese expats in the UK, PM Chinh emphasized that although Vietnam's economy is still facing many difficulties, it does not mean that the country lacks determination to fulfill international commitments. Vietnam is a responsible country and actively participates in progressive commitments with the international community. At meetings with the Vietnamese leader, representatives from large organizations and businesses around the world expressed their belief in Vietnam’s development. They signed important agreements that open up opportunities for Vietnam to access knowledge, technology, and green finance in order to realize the country’s policy of restructuring the economy towards a green and circular economy, Minister Ha said. Vietnam has shown its support and participation in many important initiatives, he added. These and PM Chinh’s political statements show Vietnam's position and responsibility in addressing serious global challenges, and its efforts to overcome serious challenges caused by climate change, the minister said. Following COP26, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE) and relevant ministries and sectors will continue to propose implementation plans to concretize the PM’s statements as well as initiatives the country has joined on the basis of carrying out policies of the Party and State for responding to climate change. Post-pandemic economic recovery is a matter of great concern to countries. COP26 offered a chance for countries to show their strength and determination to respond to the pandemic and climate change. Regarding difficulties in technical negotiations at COP26, Minister Ha said the difficulties relate to commitments on financial contribution, responsibilities to reduce emissions before 2020, the balance between adaptation and mitigation in allocating financial resources, and differences in emission mitigation calculation methods. However, the UK – the COP26 President, has actively lobbied countries to strengthen their GHG emission reduction targets, especially with the goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2050. So far, 142 countries have committed to zero emissions, of which the EU, Japan, the UK and many other countries have passed legislation on net zero targets, the minister said./.