US climate envoy John Podesta visits China for talks (Photo: Reuters)

During his visit, Podesta is scheduled to meet with China’s climate envoy Liu Zhenmin. This marks the second formal discussion on climate change between the US and China since Podesta took over from his predecessor John Kerry earlier this year.

Last week, during a meeting between US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, both sides emphasized the importance of taking concrete steps to address the climate crisis and welcomed further discussions, including Podesta’s visit. The talks will focus on areas identified in the two countries' climate cooperation agreement from last year, which includes accelerating the development of renewable energy to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.