CRI听力:New Round of UN Climate Talks Opens in Tianjin

A new round of UN climate talks opened in north China's Tianjin Municipality on Monday.

About 3,000 delegates from around the world are attending the meeting which aims to narrow differences before a major year-end conference in Cancun, Mexico. Yao Yongmei has more.

In her opening speech, United Nations Climate Change Conference Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres urged negotiators to accelerate the search for common ground and demonstrate "flexibility" and "a spirit of compromise" to reach a balanced outcome.

"If you want a tangible outcome in December, now is the time to clarify what could constitute an achievable and politically balanced package for Cancun and what could be subject to further work after Cancun."

The UN climate chief says negotiations on several key issues have yet to make progress, including the future of Kyoto Protocol and pledges put forward by the parties to slow down the growth of greenhouse gas emissions.

Figueres says now is the time for governments to take concrete action.

"Perhaps one of the most important lessons that governments have learned from Copenhagen is that you cannot build the tall building without setting the foundation. And what they are doing this year, what they have been doing in the past 10 months and what they will finish doing in Cancun, is actually setting the foundation for the next chapter of the climate regime upon which they will then be able to build."

In his address to the meeting, China's State Councilor Dai Bingguo said China would continue playing an active and constructive part in the climate talks.

Dai suggested the negotiations should stick to the basic framework of the UNFCCC and Kyoto Protocol and the mandate of the Bali Roadmap and follow the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities."

"We must continue with the goals of 'common but differentiated responsibilities.' We need to confirm that developed nations will meet their emissions reduction targets and clearly give developing nations financing, technological help and planning, and help developing nations to adapt to a new and low emissions system."

Dai stressed that China as a country of 1.3 billion people with a per capita GDP ranking about 100th in the world, faces the serious tasks of growing its economy and improving people's livelihoods. But as a responsible country, he said China has made tackling climate change one of its key national strategies.

The Tianjin gathering is the final meeting before the United Nations Climate Change Conference to be held in Cancun at the end of this year. It is the first time that such a formal meeting has been convened in China.

For CRI, this is Yao Yongmei.