As Cop31 opens in Turkey, former US secretary of state John Kerry has told the Guardian that China’s rapid expansion in green energy leaves the rest of the world, including the United States, with little choice but to follow.
While China accounts for about 85% of solar and 80% of lithium-ion battery supply chain production capacity, other nations have fallen badly behind. As a result of this transition, domestic emissions have been in a “flat or falling” trend since March 2024, according to analysis for Carbon Brief.
According to Kerry, countries that fail to embrace low-carbon power and rapid electrification will lose out economically while putting the climate in further danger. Clean-tech exports surpassed $220bn in 2025, serving as a vital component of the export engine that has kept China’s sluggish post-pandemic economy on track. Nearly 75% of electric cars were manufactured there in 2025, establishing the world’s largest emitter as the world’s leading supplier of clean energy technology.
Kerry contrasted China’s trajectory with international progress, stating, The only country that has hugely accelerated is China. The rest of the world is stumbling along while Mother Nature is sending us more powerful signals every week, every day.
ENERGY IS PROSPERITY IS NATIONAL SECURITY #bbcaq #c4news That is why Labour is banning new North Sea exploration?! https://t.co/MT8W534K9k
He noted that China realized it had excessive dependency on oil and gas from other places and decided to become independent. Regarding other nations, Kerry remarked, They’ll see where the market is going, and they will recognise where the cheaper alternatives are. Even they can read a spreadsheet, and understand where costs are exorbitant [in fossil fuels], and where you have a better deal.
As the climate conference gets underway, watchers are speculating about whether China will step into a leadership role it has historically avoided. In its latest five-year plan adopted in March 2026, Beijing pledged for the first time to actively participate in and lead global climate governance.
Li Shuo from the Asia Society Policy Institute noted that climate action is increasingly a driver of growth, leaving China facing a question of whether it will step into leadership out of self-interest.
Kevin Tu from the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies noted that Beijing views this energy transition as central to economic modernisation and energy security, with significant implications for international influence.
President Xi Jinping has described China as a doer and go-getter working for the cause of global development,
a sentiment frequently supported by state media coverage of renewable projects in countries ranging from Indonesia to Pakistan and Kenya.
Furthermore, China has indicated it wants Cop31 to discuss the free flow of green technology amid intensifying geopolitical conflicts, which is widely viewed as a reference to US and EU tariffs on items such as Chinese solar products and electric vehicles. Kerry emphasized that the global shift is unstoppable, noting that the marketplace has made its decision and is moving globally to electrons and electrostate status.
