China and the U.S. pledge to step up climate efforts ahead of Biden-Xi summit

A resident rides past the Guohua Power Station in northern China's Hebei province. China and the U.S. have pledged to accelerate their efforts to address climate change ahead of a major U.N. meeting on the issue. (Ng Han Guan/AP)

BEIJING — China and the U.S. have pledged to accelerate their efforts to address climate change ahead of a major U.N. meeting on the issue, making a commitment to take steps to reduce emissions of methane and other greenhouse gases besides carbon dioxide.

The joint announcement came on the eve of a summit between Presidents Biden and Xi Jinping that is aimed at stabilizing the rocky U.S.-China relationship.