President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping together signed documents committing their nations to the Paris climate change pact on Saturday while meeting in Hangzhou, China. Because the agreement is not considered a treaty, it does not require the approval of the U.S. Senate; and it will require the United States to cut emissions levels by 26 percent over the next nine years.
This marks a major step toward the deal's required approval from 55 countries and 55 percent of the world's carbon emitters (China and America together are responsible for 38 percent of carbon emissions). Officials hope to fully ratify the deal before November, so that Republican Donald Trump cannot fulfill his pledge to undo it should he win the election.
"Just as I believe the Paris agreement will ultimately prove to be a turning point for our planet, I believe that history will judge today's efforts as pivotal," Obama said at the signing ceremony. Xi agreed on the historic nature of the occasion. "Our response to climate change bears on the future of our people and the well-being of mankind," he said.
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