China is making promising progress in meeting its target of cutting carbon emissions by 60-65 percent from the 2005 level, said the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

Last year, China's greenhouse gas emissions was down 45.8 percent from the 2005 level, according to government data.

"China still faces tasks such as developing economy and improving people's livelihoods, and the country is also facing trade war pressure. One can imagine the difficulty of reaching that 65 percent emissions cut goal," said Li Gao, director-general of climate change at the Ministry of Ecology and Environment. 

"But do not  underestimate China’s commitment and determination to honor its promise. We have already started making plans for the next five-year-plan in terms of carbon emissions," said Li.

The UN Climate Action Summit will begin on September 23 in New York. China said it will push for comprehensive implementation of the Paris Agreement.

"Climate change is not a theory, it's an obvious fact now. Extreme weather events such as the recent Amazon fire and devastating typhoons like Lekima are all consequences of that. If we do not take action, extreme weathers will occur more frequently," warned Li.