Timothy Gardner, Axel Threlfall

(Reuters) – Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States, is optimistic that China and the United States will come to an agreement at the U.N. Climate Change talks in Glasgow. This follows their 2015 collaboration in helping to reach the Paris Agreement.

In an interview that was broadcast Monday at the Reuters Impact conference Gore said China may surprise the world and bring forward either one or both its goals for reaching carbon neutrality and peak emission.

Gore indicated that tensions between China, America, and Russia, two of the top greenhouse gas polluters in the world, must be considered. Beijing and Washington have clashed about alleged violations of human rights in Xinjiang, Hong Kong and military activities in the South China Sea.

Gore was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 for his efforts in informing the public about climate change. He expressed hope that tensions could be eased at U.N.COP26 negotiations in Glasgow, Scotland which begin on October 31.

He said, “It is true that during the first part of the year…it didn’t appear as though the stars were aligned.” “Since then we have witnessed a (President) Xi Jinping’s welcome promise at the U.N. General Assembly, announcing China would stop financing overseas coal plants.

Xi announced last month https://reut.rs/3oBZPhv that China would stop building new coal-fired power plants overseas after similar pledges by Japan and South Korea earlier this year. John Kerry, U.S. climate ambassador had asked China to take their example.

Global business leaders as well as politicians will be attending the Reuters Impact conference ahead of COP26 to talk about efforts to reduce climate change and foster sustainable growth.

‘ABSOLUTELY FALSE INFO’

Gore stated that Xi may be able to achieve one or both the U.N. General Assembly climate goals – China should reach its peak emission levels before 2030, and then become carbon neutral by 2060 – Gore believes Xi can do so.

Gore stated that China could “surprise the world at Glasgow”.

U.S. President Joe Biden pledged in September https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/us-seeks-double-climate-change-aid-developing-nations-biden-2021-09-21 to work with Congress to double funds to help developing countries deal with climate change to $11.4 billion a year by 2024 and Gore said this could help push other countries to boost their pledges.

Increased funding would help reach a goal of $100 billion per annum by 2020 for countries that are vulnerable to climate change. A target set more than 10 years ago, but not reached.

Gore said that he is optimistic about the recent efforts of business groups like the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative. This group, which has $43 trillion in assets and joined an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050, also stated Gore.

However, he pointed out that fossil fuel companies are using “absolutely false data to trick people into believing the climate crisis doesn’t exist, isn’t that serious, or they have any solutions”.

He criticised U.S. energy companies’ announcements Chevron (NYSE: ) Concerning the expansion of capacity of renewable, which is gas that has been captured at landfills and agricultural waste.

It’s absurd. Gore spoke out against so-called renewable natural gases.

Chevron has not yet responded to my request for comment.

Gore was optimistic, but he said that the world wasn’t moving quickly enough.

He said that extreme weather can cause more refugees to flee developing countries without taking further actions. These could trigger “xenophobia” and “populist authority impulses” in the country they are moving to.

To watch the Reuters Impact conference please register here https://reutersevents.com/events/impact/