CRI听力:UN Hails China-US Effort on Greenhouse Issue

U.N. Chief Ban Ki-Moon is praising the new pledge made by China and the United States to limit greenhouse gases.

At the same time, Ban Ki-Moon is calling on the rest of the world to follow suit.

He's made the statement on the sidelines of an ASEAN summit in Myanmar.

"The decision on their position to increase their level of commitment to reducing CO2 emissions is an important contribution to the new climate change agreement to be agreed to in Paris next year. I urge all countries, especially all major economies to follow China and the United States and announce ambitious post 2020 targets as soon as possible but no later than the first quarter of 2015."

At the same time, the chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is also commending the Sino-US agreement as "a big step forward" and "a very encouraging development."

However, Rajendra Pachauri says the new goals of the US and China are just "a beginning", saying extensive cuts in emissions are needed if global warming is to be limited to 2 degrees Celsius.