President Xi Jinping addresses world leaders at the Paris climate conference on Nov 30. Huang Jingwen / Xinhua

President calls on developed world to honor commitments on climate change

President Xi Jinping, addressing world leaders at the Paris climate conference, urged them to abandon a zero-sum mindset in battling the global climate threat and achieve a historic agreement to reduce Earth's carbon emissions after 2020.

"The Paris conference should reject the narrow-minded mentality of a zero-sum game," said Xi, adding that the Paris conference should yield positive and practical results with a comprehensive, balanced, ambitious and binding agreement.

Xi spoke at the opening of the talks, held in a climate of tightened security, in the presence of up to 150 global leaders including US President Barack Obama, who met with Xi and also issued two joint presidential statements last year and in September to solidify the consensus among the world's two biggest economies and carbon emitters.

Observers say while Xi and other global leaders have strengthened their commitments, they have entrusted their negotiation teams with flexibility and room to compromise to achieve a deal. All parties need to accept the agreement, they say, even if it is not satisfying to all, which is normal in any international negotiation.

A final agreement will be reached on Dec 11 if talks progress apace, while a draft text should be ready on Dec 4.

In his 10-minute address, Xi also said that tackling climate change is a shared mission for mankind and that global efforts on climate change are like a mirror reflecting a model for future global governance.

The principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" should be adhered to, the president said, and the conference should create a win-win future, with each country contributing to the best of its ability and with countries being allowed to seek their own solutions.

Xi has joined other leaders in trying to break the deadlock on financing in the UN climate negotiations and to bring real money to the table, while urging rich countries to honor a commitment to finance a $100 billion climate fund each year by 2020 and to provide strong support for developing countries afterward.

It's also important that climate-friendly technology is transferred to developing countries, he said.