Dear Editor,
The framework agreement described as an ‘unexpected development’ reached between China and the USA to increase cooperation in three critical areas of climate change at the COP 26 conference must be a lesson for the naysayers on the one hand, and a victory for the practitioners of quiet diplomacy on the other. The Presidents of China and Russia came under criticism by the Heads of a number of western governments including the President of the USA for opting out of the Glasgow summit. But at the time of launching his criticism President Biden must have known that his emissary was engaged in quiet diplomacy with his Chinese counterpart with the objective of reaching an agreement of some sort before the venue for the COP 26 conference closed its doors finally. So, all the noise and criticisms of China notwithstanding, the announcement of the China-US joint statement was a sobering reminder once again, that we ought not to be surprised by the unexpected.
This is not the first time quiet, soft or preventive diplomacy has prevailed successfully. History is replete with examples around the world showing where this diplomatic practice won the day especially when it is aligned with a country’s national and international interests. This was precisely the case with both China and the USA. Both governments had publicly declared policy positions, domestic targets and pledges that, on the surface, reflected their respective nationally determined contributions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Both China and the USA had long recognized that the urgency to address climate change requires international cooperation in general and US-China bilateral cooperation in particular.
Moreover, being the two largest greenhouse gas emitters they further recognized that the consequences of non-cooperation are not limited to their respective jurisdictions but to the world at large and that on their own, they would be unable to provide a satisfactory global solution were they not to help accelerate the transition to a global net zero economy. Consequently, notwithstanding the badly strained relations between the two countries, China maintained an open door policy to negotiations with the US on climate change. Both countries recognized the need to mutually balance their competing domestic and international interests and at the same time, to engage in ‘backchannel’ negotiations that served to bring about the success achieved. In the circumstances, diplomacy quiet or otherwise, in the context of COP26, demonstrated once again its efficacy and power as a communication process between political entities.
Sincerely,
Clement J. Rohee
Former Minister of Foreign
Affairs
