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Friday, April 30, 2021

India COVID: 30,709,557 Cases and 405,057 Deaths, learn from India's crisis!

A patient suffering from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) receives treatment inside the emergency ward at Holy Family hospital in New Delhi, India, April 29, 2021. REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui 

India COVID: 30,709,557 Cases and 405,057 Deaths ...

 

India's COVID-19 cases surpass 21 million amid oxygen ...

 An Indian health worker checks body temperature of a man during a door-to-door survey being conducted as a precaution against COVID-19 in Hyderabad, India, May 6, 2021

 

India COVID cases top 20 million, halting cricket, prompting lockdown call

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/indias-tally-coronavirus-infections-crosses-20-million-2021-05-04/

 

https://www.reuters.com/world/india/indias-coronavirus-infections-cross-18-million-2021-04-29/

 


 
 

 

Govt denies reports of problems with its vaccine campaign

BENGALURU: India’s total Covid-19 cases passed 18 million after another world record daily infection, as the government rejected reports of problems with its vaccine campaign.

India reported 379,257 new Covid-19 cases and 3,645 new deaths yesterday, according to health ministry data. It was the highest number of deaths reported in a single day in India since the start of the pandemic.

India’s best hope to curb its second deadly wave of Covid-19 was to vaccinate its vast population, said experts, and on Wednesday it opened registrations for everyone above the age of 18 to be given jabs from tomorrow.

But the country, which is one of the world’s biggest producers of vaccines, does not have the stocks for the estimated 600 million people who will be eligible.

Many who tried to sign up said they failed, complaining on social media that they could not get a slot or they simply could not get online to register as the website repeatedly crashed.

“Statistics indicate that far from crashing or performing slowly, the system is performing without any glitches,” the government said in a statement on Wednesday.

The government said more than eight million people had registered for the vaccinations, but it was not immediately clear how many had got slots.

About 9% of India’s population have received one dose since the vaccination campaign began in January with healthworkers and then the elderly.

The second wave of infections has overwhelmed hospitals and crematoriums and prompted an increasingly urgent response from allies overseas sending equipment.

“India’s outbreak is a humanita­rian crisis,” US Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren said on Twitter.

“I’m leading a letter to @moderna_tx, @pfizer, and @jnjnews to find out what steps they’re taking to expand global access to their vaccines to save lives and prevent variants from spreading around the world,” she said.

Two planes from Russia, carrying 20 oxygen concentrators, 75 ventilators, 150 bedside monitors, and medicines totalling 22 metric tonnes, arrived in the capital Delhi yesterday.

Delhi is reporting one death from Covid-19 every four minutes and ambulances have been taking the bodies of Covid-19 victims to makeshift crematorium facilities in parks and parking lots, where bodies burned on rows and rows of funeral pyres.

The US State Department issued a travel advisory warning on Wednesday against travel to India because of the pandemic and approved the voluntary departure of family members of US government employees in India.

A country of nearly 1.4 billion people, India thought the worst was over when cases ebbed in September.

But mass public gatherings such as political rallies and religious events that were allowed to continue, and relaxed attitudes on the risks fed by leaders touting victory over the virus led to what now has become a major humanitarian crisis, health experts say.

New variants of the virus have also partly led the surge.

Amid the crisis, voting for the eighth and final phase of the West Bengal state elections began yesterday, even as the devastating surge of infections continues to barrel across the country with a ferocious speed, filling crematoriums and graveyards.

More than eight million people are expected to vote in at least 11,860 polling stations across the state. A commission said distancing measures would be in place.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party have faced criticism over the last few weeks for holding huge election rallies in the state, which health experts suggest might have driven the surge there too.

Other political parties also parti­cipated in rallies.

The state recorded more than 17,000 cases in the last 24 hours – its highest spike since the pandemic began. — Agencies

 

Adham: Learn from India's crisis

Space issue: A file photo of Serdang Hospital, which is now at 80% capacity. 

PETALING JAYA: Malaysians must take the rise in Covid-19 cases seriously to avoid a similar crisis as the one unfolding in India, says Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba.

His call comes as certain states and private hospitals are eportedly running out capacity to house and treat Covid-19 patients, although the overall occupancy rates of hospitals in the country as a whole was still at just over half.

“In January, (India) said that it looked like it was nearing the end of the pandemic, so people gathered in crowds, went here and there, and as a result, it is facing a storm.

“We must learn from them, especially with the existence of a new Covid-19 variant here, we feel that every Malaysian must be more careful and evaluate how the situation in India has worsened.

“If there is no need to be out, gather or have non-important meetings, then it is better to avoid doing so at this time because there are so many sporadic cases happening in the community, ” said Dr Adham when contacted yesterday.

Malaysia has been logging over 3,000 new infections daily over the past few days.

This has led to an occupancy rate of 54% of beds at the 72 Covid-19 public hospitals nationwide.

However, in states with high case numbers like Kelantan, Sarawak, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur, hospitals are either at full or above 80% capacity.

“In Selangor, Hospital Sungai Buloh, Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Klang and Hospital Serdang are at 80% capacity and it is something we are worried about.

“In Kuala Lumpur, Universiti Malaya Medical Centre has also reached 80% capacity.

“Johor is also worrying as the Permai Hospital Sports Complex is at 80% capacity and so is Hospital Sultanah Nora Ismail, where 61 beds out of 78 are filled, ” he said.

He dded that the government decided to extend the interstate travel ban as there were many clusters and sporadic cases resulting from such movements.

In states with a high number of Covid-19 cases, Dr Adham said the Ministry is coping by adding the capacity for low-risk quarantine and treatment centres (PKRCs), to which Level 1,2 and 3 patients are diverted, while Level 4 and 5 patients or more severe cases are sent to hospitals.

In Kelantan, the number of Covid-19 beds in Hospital Tumpat had to be increased from 84 to 87, while Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia is full and Hospital Machang has filled 21 of its 24 beds.

In Sarawak, Hospital Bintulu increased the number of Covid-19 beds from 102 to 147 while in Kapit and Sarikei, hospitals were already at capacity.

However, there were also hospitals with zero or below 50% Covid-19 bed occupancy, such as in Sabah, he said.

“Hospital beds are not nearly or at capacity in every state, but only in states with a high number of cases.

“Hospitals are only for Level 4 and 5 patients but so far it is still within control, ” he added.

Meanwhile for the PKRCs, out of 23,366 beds nationwide, only 43% were filled as at yesterday.

“We are also planning to add 600 more beds at the PKRC in Sungai Buloh, ” said Dr Adham.

Meanwhile, the Malaysia Agro Exposition Park Serdang (MAEPS) has 9,000 beds and can accommodate patients from nearby states like Perak, Melaka and Negri Sembilan.

Level 1 patients or those who were asymptomatic and suitable for home quarantine were already allowed to do so by the Covid-19 Assessment Centre (CAC).

“This is under strict monitoring by the district health office and only if their situation is found to be suitable, otherwise, we will take them to the PKRC, ” said Dr Adham.

Public hospitals have also been outsourcing certain non-Covid-19 patients with light medical issues or elective cases to private hospitals to free up beds in public facilities, he added.

Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia president Datuk Dr Kuljit Singh said private hospitals have reached their capacity for Covid-19 patients.

Dr Kuljit had asked the Ministry to decant non-Covid-19 patients to their hospitals in order to give public hospitals space to handle Covid-19 cases.

On Jan 11, during the peak of the previous surge in infections, the Emergency Ordinance was implemented, allowing the government to take over private healthcare resources.

Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the Ministry will continue to refer non-Covid-19 cases to private hospitals to free up beds in public facilities.

“We have sent more than 3,000 cases with 48 non-Covid-19 illnesses to private hospitals to create more beds to treat Covid-19 patients.

“When cases are increasing, we will first stop elective surgery to increase the beds but continue emergency and non-emergency cases.

“We will certainly refer non-Covid-19 cases to private hospitals like we did before, ” he said.

Dr Kuljit said private hospitals had provided beds and expertise based on their individual capacity and capability.

However, due to the spike in Covid-19 cases over the last 14 days, all beds designated for the disease in private hospitals are occupied, including isolated intensive care unit (ICU) beds.

“Most private hospitals are not able to accept any more Covid-19 patients, particularly in the Klang Valley.

“Private hospitals are constrained on the number of beds and ICU facilities that can accommodate Covid-19 patients as well as the availability of specialists and nurses, ” he said in a statement yesterday.

Dr Kuljit added that even beds in private facilities in the Klang Valley and Johor were filling up fast.

“The biggest fear would be if we face a healthcare shutdown because of non-availability of beds and oxygen treatment, ” he said.

 

Related 

 

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Digital way to declare and pay income tax

e-Filing counter facilities are no longer available since last year following the new norm SOP.


 LET’S Click HASiL is a convenient programme for taxpayers to declare their income and pay taxes to the the Inland Revenue Board (IRB).

What is Let’s Click HASiL

Let’s Click HASiL enables taxpayers to submit their income tax return or make payment through the convenience of the easy, accurate and secure MyTax app.

MyTax is the primary access to ezHASiL services such as e-Filing, e-Register, ByrHASiL and other services accessible to all taxpayers with a single sign-on.

Taxpayers can file their return form electronically while ensuring the details are accurate.

Additionally, the programme also provides advice to taxpayers through virtual briefings held in accordance with new norm SOP set by the government.

Submission deadline

The Let’s Click HASiL programme runs from March 1 to June 30,2021.

For individuals without business income, they have until April 30 to submit their BE Form.

People who receive income from business have until June 30 to submit their B Form.

However, e-BE submission via e-Filing allows taxpayers to submit the form by May 15 – an extended period compared to paper submission by April 30, while the deadline for e-B is July 15.

 

Tax refund

For individuals without business income, their employer would have made monthly tax deduction off the monthly salary, reducing the burden of employees as they don’t have to pay a lump sum for their annual income tax.

You are eligible to receive a tax refund if you have paid excess monthly tax deduction than the actual tax levied. The income tax imposed can be reduced through tax reliefs and tax rebates.

The e-Filing service gives taxpayers the advantage of receiving their tax refunds within 30 working days as opposed to 90 days for form submissions by post or hand delivery.

ezHASiL simplified taxation

ezHASiL enables taxpayers to manage their taxation online through e-Filing, e-Register, e-Update, e-Ledger and ByrHASiL without having to visit IRB branches physically.

e-Filing counter facilities are no longer available since last year following the new norm SOP.

The e-Filing system can be accessed via the IRB’s official website at www.hasil.gov.my > MyTax > ezHasil Services > e-Filing.

First-time users are required to obtain the PIN number by filling in the feedback form on the website.

Once you have the PIN number, you can start your e-Filing, make payments using ByrHASiL, access payment review through e-Ledger or update personal details via e-Update.

Declare and pay your income tax at mytax.hasil.gov.my. Let us all do our part to ensure prosperity for the country.

Inquiries can be made through the Customer Feedback Form or call the HASiL Care Line (03-8911 1000). Visit www.hasil.gov.my for further information.

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Related:

Taxpayers under amnesty programme still need to meet cobditions says LHDN 

LHDN: No audit on those under SVDP amnesty but they must fellow guidelines 

Groups_ Stick to promise and not penalise taxpayers _ The Star

Monday, April 26, 2021

The world hijacked by Washington’s selfishness, Should India thank US' belated aid? 第三波疫情猛如虎 !

 llustration: Chen Xia/GT 

 Video https://www.globaltimes.cn/video/#.YIbAJJ1_i1s.twitter

 

Bagaimana Tsunami Covid Di India Boleh Berlaku

 


  China and India should put their differences aside and join forces in fighting pandemic

 

 Now the whole world is talking about how selfish the US is regarding COVID-19 vaccines. The most developed country in the world that talks about human rights the most refuses to export vaccines to other countries that are severely hit by the pandemic. Washington is determined to let its citizens get vaccinated first before it shares vaccines with others.


More than a quarter of Americans are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus now, while about 40 percent of people in the US have received at least one shot. Not everyone wants to get vaccinated, so it is predicted that there will be a surplus of vaccines in the country after mid-May. At the same time, many developing countries are suffering vaccine shortage. In Namibia, an African country with a population of 2.5 million, only 128 people have received two doses of a vaccine until now.

The ugly "America First" doctrine on vaccines was fully revealed by the coronavirus outbreak in India. A humanitarian disaster has developed in the country. However, India's call for Washington to ease curbs on the export of vaccine raw materials was rejected. US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said Tuesday that the priority of the country is "ensuring the distribution of a safe and effective vaccine to millions of Americans, to all Americans who are able to take advantage of it." Washington also turned down calls from India, South Africa and others to waive patents on COVID-19 vaccines.

To date, the US has made almost no actual contribution to the global fight against the pandemic. As the most developed country in the world, it did a poor job in the epidemic fight, failing to contribute any positive experiences to other countries. The country imported a huge amount of supplies such as masks and ventilators that were in short supply in the world last year. Washington undermined global cooperation against the virus by attacking the World Health Organization for quite a long time. The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is Washington's most important product to fight against the pandemic. But until now it has been used primarily to protect Americans and a limited number of US allies.

"America First" is a very crude principle. It has become a practical guide to bipartisan actions in the US. The former administration of Donald Trump had both said and acted according to this principle. Although the Biden administration hasn't talked about it, it is in fact also acting in line with the principle.

Transmitted to the political center through each American constituency, the US' selfishness has formed a kind of "rightfulness" under American democracy. Meanwhile, Washington is keen to promote its idea of "human rights" to the world. It acts like it has compassion for all humanity, and surprisingly, it does not feel awkward about it at all.

The world cannot allow the US to abuse the right to define international justice. Washington has refused to share vaccines with developing countries proportionally. The world should jointly condemn it, making Washington bend its head, like a rat scurrying across the street with everybody chasing it. However, till today, the US is still arrogantly claiming it is a global moral leader. It even accuses China and Russia's efforts to share vaccines of being "vaccine diplomacy." The US has totally called white black and black white.

The US has misled and hijacked various countries' national security concept. This is where its arrogance comes from. The world is in an era of peaceful development, but US elites have successfully fanned many countries' anxieties over geosecurity, as the US is the one who has the most abundant resources to play the geopolitical game. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is the biggest security shock that countries have encountered in recent years, but many countries have deeply fallen into the geopolitical myth and been hijacked by Washington. Therefore, they indulged Washington's misdeeds.

India in fact has become a victim of the US tricks. India already had an economic slump before the outbreak of the pandemic. India's relations with China have been manipulated by the US so severely that even its vaccine assistance provided to other countries took China as a target. However, now India has suddenly become the epicenter of the global pandemic. It is caught in a predicament where it is unable to deal with the situation by itself, receives no support from the US, while it is too embarrassed to accept China's help.

In short, the US has caused harm to the whole world in recent years. Despite being a self-proclaimed world leader, it failed to act as a responsible power in terms of economy, security and the anti-pandemic fight. However, Washington has managed to keep the "moral high ground" and issue orders. It is fair to say that it is the world, including countries like India, that has indulged it. We are suffering a tragedy caused by ourselves.

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 Should India thank US' belated aid?

 
Multiple funeral pyres of COVID-19 victims burn at a site converted for mass cremations in New Delhi, India on Saturday.  Indian authorities are scrambling to get medical oxygen to hospitals when the country reported a new global daily record of more than 346,000 infections for a third straight day. Photo: AP

Multiple funeral pyres of COVID-19 victims burn at a site converted for mass cremations in New Delhi, India on Saturday. Indian authorities are scrambling to get medical oxygen to hospitals when the country reported a new global daily record of more than 346,000 infections for a third straight day. Photo: AP

Under great pressure from international public opinion, US President Joe Biden said on Monday the US is determined to "help" India. It's reported that more than 300 oxygen concentrators have been dispatched from New York on Sunday morning and are supposed to arrive in New Delhi on Monday. This was in sharp contrast with the US' negative attitude toward assisting India until last week. 

US allies including the UK, France, and Germany also announced to offer assistance to India on Sunday, which left people with an impression that Washington has coordinated with them. 

Many Indians are complaining that the US aid comes way too late and is more of symbolic significance. Several hundred oxygen concentrators are inadequate for India. What the country needs now are tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands. The US will immediately deploy supplies and other assistance, including raw materials for COVID-19 vaccine, to India, the White House said, following a Sunday call between US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval. But the US will still have reservations over the quantity of material exports, and the implementation process will face challenges.   

Biden's approval rating stands at only 52 percent after almost 100 days in office, the third-lowest since tracking began in 1945, following Donald Trump and Gerald Ford. Biden is facing enormous pressure from the Republicans and some Democrats. "America First" has been deeply embedded into the values of the US and has become a red line that Biden dares not touch. 

There are two reasons for the US' strategic selfishness. First, this is the inherent nature of the US system, which is prone to amplify individual selfishness rather than restrain and counterbalance such selfishness. Second, the US has become relatively weak, and it cannot meet its "leadership role." India is a country with an enormous population. In the long run, it will cost US much more to "lead" India than any of its other allies.   

One unhealthy aspect of the global anti-pandemic fight is that science and humanitarian logic have failed to truly dominate the fight on the international stage. Geopolitical thinking has never been away from the fight. It has disrupted the pandemic fight from time to time, and even managed to play a dominating role at some moments. India has been struggling in a critical situation, but geopolitical clues are still evident in its epidemic-related information. This is regrettable. COVID-19 patients are dying in batches, but some people are still debating which country's assistance India should take and what it would mean for international relations in future. 

Whatever happens, we hope India could curb its epidemic as soon as possible. Mankind is a community with a shared future when it comes to the fight against the pandemic. As India is a large country¸ the raging epidemic in India inevitably means increasing risks for other countries and regions. How India can realize a soft landing with a lower death toll will offer useful experience for other developing countries.  

The new coronavirus variant detected in India seems to be able to ferociously spread with the approach of summer, which requires higher international vigilance. India's tsunami-like COVID-19 wave warns us that fighting the coronavirus pandemic is a long-term "world war" and many unexpected new battlefields and new battles may await us. We can never let our guard down.

Countries with a strong capability to resist COVID-19 have to assume greater responsibility. It is vital that the US joins them. The US has made little positive contribution to the global fight against the pandemic. Lending a helping hand to India can be seen as the first US attempt to play such a role. We hope it will be Washington's turning point. The US has gravely dragged the global fight against the pandemic, and it is supposed to proactively make up for it.

Since last year, the novel coronavirus pandemic has hit many countries and regions in the world, resulting in unbelievable deaths and economic losses. But some countries are still building their national security in traditional ways. This is a strategic mistake, at least to some extent. Washington has played a misleading role in this regard. In other words, if the US is drunk, many other countries may not be able to remain sober.

 

第三波疫情猛如虎 


“加拿大”禁止航班的进出,每天死亡人数超过1000人。 

“沙特阿拉伯”封锁,没有进出航班。 “坦桑尼亚”紧跟国际形势全面封锁。 

“巴西”跌入了最致命的篇章,今天有4100多人死亡。 

“西班牙”也已宣布可延长紧急状态。 

“英国”宣布为期一个月的封锁。 “法国”2周封锁。 “德国”4周封锁。 “意大利”今天也紧跟随其后。 

“所有”这些国家/地区已经确认“第三波COVID19 ”比第一波致命。 因此,我们必须非常小心,并采取所有预防措施。

 成为朋友和家人之间的警报沟通者。“从第三波中拯救每个人”。 “不要以第二波封锁阶段”没发生什么来作判断 ... 

近期更可怕疫情发生在拥有I3亿人口的印度。因防疫松懈,病毒双重突变,致疫情全面失控。4月4日首次突破10万例,4月I5日单日新增破纪录20万例,22日首超30万例,24日首超33万例。而且全国缺乏氧气,缺乏口罩及抗疫资源,并正成为新的双重变异病毒的总爆发点,并向多个国家漫延。 

 “历史告诉我们,与1917年至1919年的西班牙流感一样,第三波比第一,二波更危险。 数百万人死亡。

” “保护好你自己和你的家人”。 保持生物安全措施,戴口罩,保持社交距离,勤洗手等。 

历史不会说谎,让我们反思。

 __________ _______ 

不要自己保留此信息,要与家人和朋友分享。 提高警惕!

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Friday, April 23, 2021

China calls for building a community for man and nature at US-held climate summit

 

 https://youtu.be/l_t9VxfewIg

The Leaders' Summit on Climate is convened on Thursday. Photo: Xinhua

 Climate could be ‘competition hot spot’ due to US uncertainty

 

During a US-led global climate summit in which Washington seeks to shore up global leadership on the issue, Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated China's goal of reaching carbon neutrality in 2060, a goal that is hailed by analysts as most ambitious in terms of time duration compared with developed countries; and the president's proposal of "jointly building a community for man and nature" was praised by observers as "putting up a new rule for human being's new civilization."

Addressing the summit, Xi said from Beijing via video link that in the face of unprecedented difficulties in global environmental governance, the international community must take unprecedented ambitions and actions, bravely shoulder responsibilities, and work together to build a community for man and nature.

US President Joe Biden pledged in his opening remarks at the summit to cut US greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030 compared to 2005 levels, a target that would nearly double America's previous commitment when signing the Paris Agreement, which was to reduce its emissions about 28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025.

By inviting leaders of some 40 state leaders to attend the summit and announcing an unbinding yet ambitious goal, Biden eyed a high-profile comeback for the US in the global climate framework, after four years of the Trump administration's unvarnished climate denial landed a heavy blow to international efforts to combat climate change, observers said.

China's ambition, devotion

Xi said at the summit that China welcomes the US coming back to the multilateral governing process on climate issues, and China and the US just issued a joint statement on responding to the climate crisis. He also urged countries to stick to their promises, instead of walking back against their commitment.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India made no new commitment. Only US allies, including Canada and Japan, announced their new goal in climate change. Canada vowed to cut its greenhouse emissions by 40 to 45 percent from 2005 levels by 2030, compared with its previous target of a 30 percent emissions reduction in the same time frame.

Some Western media, including the Associated Press, reported previously that Biden's proposal of a new climate goal is to prod countries to further cut their emissions. Yet Chinese climate observers lashed out at such intention, saying that being the country investing the highest in clean energy, China is doing its utmost to curb emissions; and its determination in this area won't be pressured by countries with about-faces on this issue.

Xie Zhenhua, China's special envoy on climate change, said at a press conference held after Xi's speech that although China did not put forward a specific plan for 2030, China's current goal is very ambitious.

The EU's per capita carbon dioxide emissions reached 7.9 tons from 1990 to 1992 when the bloc realized carbon peaking, and the figure was 19.9 tons for the US when its carbon emissions peaked in 2007, said Xie, noting China's carbon dioxide emissions per capita will be 7.2 to 7.5 tons when its emission peaks in 2030, far below that of the US.

He said that China will realize its goals set previously, and is making plans and investments. "China made an ambitious plan and will stick to its word… Its ambition needs not be questioned," said the envoy.

"China would not bring forward new goals, but China will gradually detail its existing goals, such as the coal industry reaching the carbon emissions peak earlier," Li Junfeng, former director general of China's National Center of Climate Change Strategy Research under the National Development and Reform Commission, told the Global Times on Thursday.

China will include carbon emissions peak and carbon neutrality into the country's whole layout of building an eco-civilization, and is working on plans of carbon emissions peak, said Xi.

In the post-industrial era, tackling the climate issue also means changing the way of thinking and the way of production as well as the way of life. It's an ambitious plan for China as the country has to catch up and even exceed other developed countries in reaching the goals that developed countries took many years to reach, Wang Yiwei, director of the institute of international affairs at Renmin University of China, told the Global Times on Thursday.

According to Wang, China would only spend 30 years to reach the carbon emissions peak to carbon neutrality as the largest developing country with the largest population. "China is committed to achieving the goals which will greatly contribute to the global fight against climate change, inspiring more developing countries to make utmost efforts."

During the summit, Xi also put forward a six-point proposal on building a community of life for man and nature. To build such a community, we must be committed to harmony between man and nature, green development, systemic governance, a people-centered approach, multilateralism, and the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, Xi said.

Xi's proposal of the term sets a new rule for human civilization, and if the biggest developing country can realize such goal, China will galvanize other developing countries to follow suit. By doing this, China is also meant to serve as a bridge between developed and developing countries, which is to infuse the green notion and technology used in developed countries to third world countries.

Cooperation or contest?

By enticing leaders to participate in the summit, the US, which had hindered global climate efforts, aims to shore up leadership in the field and demonstrate its determination by upping the ante of its emissions goal, Yang Fuqiang, a research fellow at Peking University's Research Institute for Energy, told the Global Times on Thursday.

Yet the expert said the US' seemingly ambitious yet unbinding promise is "symbolic." "The US has let its emissions rise unrestrained after its withdrawal from the Paris Agreement. Now, it is setting a target compared with the start point, but who is going to fix the few year's gap left by the US, and why does Washington still believe it has the legitimacy to prod other countries to set an ambitious goal after its flip-flop has diminished global efforts in fighting climate change?"

The US Environmental Protection Agency's February data shows the country's carbon emissions rose during the first three years after former US president Donald Trump decided to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement.

The country's total emissions in 2019 were still 121 MMt above where they were in 2017 when Trump took office, marking the highest level of carbon pollution the US generated in five years.

Unlike China, which has a smooth and efficient system of implementing orders from above, Biden's climate plan is facing a filibuster dilemma, mostly from Republicans who oppose his plan, and will eventually cripple the US president's plan of pushing forward his clean energy project, Li said.

The US also targeted the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), trying to throw mud at China's efforts in tackling global warming. While campaigning for the US presidency, Biden criticized China for financing dirty fossil fuel projects around the world through the BRI - and essentially "outsourcing" Chinese carbon pollution to other countries.

"Developing countries in the BRI prioritize boosting the economy, which results in large amounts of carbon emissions. But without the help from China's technology and capital, the emissions will be larger than the current level," said Yang.

Xi also vowed at the summit to prioritize ecological civilization into the BRI. China has launched a green action proposal and is taking green infrastructure, energy, transportation, finance and a slew of other green measures to benefit people of BRI countries.

China has worked together with BRI countries to elevate their ability to cope with climate change, and has build low-carbon demonstration areas with countries such as Cambodia and Laos.

In contrast, the US has invested large amounts of money to support overseas fossil fuel projects. US public finance for overseas fossil fuel projects averaged more than $4 billion annually over the past decade, at times exceeding $10 billion in a single year, according to Washington-based Oil Change International, an advocacy group opposing fossil fuels.

Some Western media and organizations also pressured China to further eliminate emissions, saying China's energy-related carbon emissions accounted for about 28.8 percent, while the US accounted for 14 percent.

Yang called such comparison "oversimplified." "We have to take into account historical emissions since the industrial revolution; countries' carbon dioxide emissions per capita and talk of realizing peak carbon emissions," Yang said.

The US has emitted more carbon dioxide than any other country to date: at around 400 billion tons since 1751, it is responsible for 25 percent of the historical emissions; that is twice more than China, according to data portal Our World in Data.

From realizing peak carbon emissions to carbon neutrality, it will take China 30 years, but the US would take 43 years for the same goal. Developed countries had caused the bulk of the historical accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Climate change has been the hot spot for countries to underscore global governance, as well as to showcase national image. It's not a bad thing that the US seeks to undertake leadership, yet its about-faces have left severe consequences, Yuan Zheng, deputy director and senior fellow of the Institute of American Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Thursday. He noted that the US government hopes to use the climate issue to serve its own strategic goals, but it would be very hard for it to completely lead other countries of great influence, including China, France and Germany.

The US is "walking against the deal at will, and wants to lead others when it's back." This has deeply hurt other countries. A mere summit is impossible to fix its image, according to Yuan.

Li Haidong, from the China Foreign Affairs University, pointed out that US climate policy lacks continuity. Biden's policy is likely to be thwarted by Republicans when the latter takes office. "It is difficult for the climate issue to be the long-term glue of China-US cooperation."

He said that as the US eyes climate issues to shoulder global leadership, the topic may become a target of strategic competition between the US with China and Russia. "So in the long run, the climate issue may be the hot spot for China-US competition."

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