Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang Outlines China's Green Agenda at CCICED

Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang addressed the 2026 annual meeting of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development in Beijing, signaling China's environmental policy priorities ahead of the 15th Five-Year Plan. Ding pledged more proactive decarbonization targets and tighter institutional oversight while urging global partners to defend multilateral climate pacts and resist trade barriers on clean technologies. He also announced state approval for the council's eighth term, reaffirming Beijing's commitment to high-level international policy advisory channels.

The China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development serves as Beijing's highest-level international advisory body on sustainability. Ding Xuexiang's remarks offer international partners and investors early insight into how policymakers intend to balance domestic economic planning under the upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan with global climate obligations, particularly amid rising international disputes over clean-energy trade.

Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang reaffirmed Beijing's commitment to accelerating its ecological transition during the 2026 annual meeting of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED) in Beijing, according to state media reports. Speaking as the chairperson of the high-level advisory body, Ding told an audience of more than 400 domestic and foreign council members, experts, and observers that China will advance a comprehensive green transformation across its economy and society during the upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan period. He pledged that the country's green and low-carbon goals will become more proactive, accompanied by more robust policy measures and a more rigorous institutional framework. To advance global sustainability, Ding outlined three primary proposals. First, he urged international partners to take concrete steps to support multilateral climate governance. He called for firmly upholding the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement, alongside full implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, to inject certainty into global environmental efforts. Second, Ding stressed the role of technological innovation in fostering what Beijing terms 'green productivity.' He called for strengthening the green innovation ecosystem, pursuing joint international research into low-carbon technologies, and accelerating the deployment of commercial solutions. He specifically highlighted the need to integrate industrial digitalization and artificial intelligence with clean production practices. Third, Ding called for open cooperation to reform global climate and environmental governance. He advocated for the high-quality development of the Green Belt and Road Initiative and deeper South-South climate cooperation. Notably, he urged nations to facilitate the unobstructed circulation of high-quality green technologies and products, warning implicitly against trade barriers in clean-energy supply chains. During the meeting, Ding formally announced that the Chinese government has approved the establishment of the Eighth Council of the CCICED, commending the outgoing seventh council for its policy contributions over the preceding five years and pledging continued state backing for the international advisory forum.