EU environment commissioner Jessika Roswall met China’s ecology and environment minister Huang Runqiu for the 11th EU-China Environment Policy Dialogue, covering biodiversity, plastics, chemical pollution and coordination ahead of several international meetings.
The talks took place on Tuesday and were co-chaired by Roswall and Huang, according to Wednesday's release by the Commission, which said the dialogue came ahead of COP17 on biodiversity in Armenia, UNCCD COP17 on land and drought in Mongolia, the UN Water Conference, and the resumption of work on a Global Plastics Treaty.
Both sides discussed speeding up implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework — a global agreement to protect nature — and the Cali Fund, which is linked to sharing benefits from digital genetic information.
They also exchanged views on “nature credits”, which are intended to help attract private funding for biodiversity.
Plastics and ‘forever chemicals’
The EU and China discussed the need for a Global Plastics Treaty and reiterated a commitment to contribute to an international legally binding instrument to tackle rising plastic pollution, the Commission said.
Roswall and Huang also talked about chemical pollution, including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) — often called “forever chemicals” because they persist in the environment — and discussed approaches to prevent and control pollution.
A further meeting is planned for 2026 as part of the 7th High Level Environment and Climate Dialogue, which the Commission said will be co-chaired by European Commission Executive Vice-President Teresa Ribera and China’s Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang.
“In the current geopolitical context, effective diplomacy is more important than ever,” Roswall said, adding that the EU and China “must continue to work together” on a plastics treaty, biodiversity commitments and “environmental multilateralism.”
