Chen Jining, Mayor of Beijing, met with Henry Paulson, the former U.S. Treasury Secretary and founder and Chairman of Paulson Institute, on the morning of May 27 via video link.

Chen Jining said that, in September last year, General Secretary Xi Jinping announced that China is committed to peaking carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality before 2060. At present, Beijing is working on a carbon neutrality action plan, striving to take the lead in emission reduction and play a demonstrative role. Finance is pivotal in promoting green and low-carbon development. Beijing leads the country in the development of green finance, with both green credit and green bonds ranking first in China. At the same time, Beijing is actively applying for setting up pilot zones for green finance reform and innovation and building a high-level China Beijing Green Exchange. We hope that the Paulson Institute will leverage its international influence to introduce quality foreign financial institutions to invest in Beijing, further expand cooperation on green finance at home and abroad and accelerate the implementation of relevant projects in Beijing, so as to support Beijing's energy structure transformation and green and low-carbon development. Beijing will provide a good environment and quality services for international financial institutions, assist enterprises in promoting cooperation and innovation, make contributions to addressing global climate change and building a community with a shared future for mankind.

Paulson appreciated Beijing's efforts and achievements in promoting sustainable development and hoped to further deepen bilateral cooperation in the following fields like emission reduction, green finance and biodiversity protection to jointly promote sustainable development.

Jin Wei, Vice Mayor of Beijing and Secretary-General of Beijing Municipal Government attended the meeting.

(Article by Yang Qi)