Participants pose for a group photo during the sixth Friends of the Paris Agreement High-Level Dialogue in Paris, France, on Oct. 28, 2024. The sixth Friends of the Paris Agreement High-Level Dialogue was held in Paris on Oct. 28-29. Organized by the European Climate Foundation and co-organized by the Institute of Climate Change and Sustainable Development of Tsinghua University, the dialogue has drawn over 20 high-level officials from signatory countries. (the European Climate Foundation/Handout via Xinhua)

The sixth Friends of the Paris Agreement High-Level Dialogue was held in Paris on Oct. 28-29, where global leaders and stakeholders gathered to review both the significant progress and ongoing challenges faced by the international community in addressing climate-related crises since the Paris Agreement's enactment.

The dialogue was co-chaired by Xie Zhenhua, former China's special envoy for climate change, and Laurence Tubiana, former France's climate change ambassador and special representative for COP21.

Organized by the European Climate Foundation and co-organized by the Institute of Climate Change and Sustainable Development of Tsinghua University, the dialogue has drawn over 20 high-level officials from signatory countries.

Among the attendees are Laurent Fabius, president of the French Constitutional Council and former French prime minister, John Kerry, former U.S. Secretary of State, Teresa Ribera, European Commission's first executive vice-president, Luiz Alberto Figueiredo Machado, former Brazilian minister of External Relations, Catherine McKenna, former Canadian minister of environment and climate change, Selwin Hart, special adviser to the UN Secretary-General and Assistant Secretary-General of the Climate Action Team, and Liu Zhenmin, China's special envoy for climate change.

As next year marks the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement, participants reached a consensus on the need for all countries to embody the spirit of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21) amid the current complex global challenges.

They also emphasized a strong commitment to defending and upholding multilateralism, advancing the global process for climate action, and adhering to the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities.

The attendees also agreed that countries must continue advancing climate actions under the framework of the Paris Agreement, adopt faster and larger-scale international cooperation to ensure the timely achievement of global climate goals, and accelerate the global transition toward green, low-carbon, and climate-resilient development.

The participants also held in-depth discussions on various climate-related issues, such as the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), climate finance, energy transition, and technological innovation.

They all agreed to further strengthen the role of the "Friends of the Paris Agreement," supporting and advancing the success of this year's UN Climate Change Conference in Baku (COP29) and laying the foundation for next year's UN Climate Change Conference in Belem (COP30) in line with the goals and principles established by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement.

The Friends of the Paris Agreement High-level Dialogue was initiated in 2019. It is hosted annually on a rotating basis by the European Climate Foundation and the Institute of Climate Change and Sustainable Development of Tsinghua University.

The dialogue, gathering high-level representatives who have played key roles in the formulation and implementation of the Paris Agreement, serves as a platform for them to provide recommendations to the United Nations, the host countries of the Climate Conference and the secretariat of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, to promote the multilateral process. 

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