Hello, my name's James Panicki. I'm the Brussels managing editor at Emlex. Welcome to another one of our

special podcasts. I'm sounding a bit congested today, but luckily the person who will be doing most of the

talking senior energy correspondent Laurel Henning is sounding crystal clear. Hello, Laurel.

Hi, James. Now, the great thing about your beat is that although you're obviously covering the

daily grind of energy and environmental policy, the regular announcements, the great thing about your beat is that although you're obviously covering the daily grind of energy and environmental policy,

the regular announcements, the facts and figures affecting the industry across the EU,

the supply of energy is important enough to take in geopolitical consideration.

So it's very much a big picture kind of a beat.

Now, the last time we talked was about the uncertainty

over the US's approach to reducing greenhouse gas emissions as a result of the election of Donald

Trump to the presidency. Today, we're turning our gaze eastward. And in your feature article,

which is associated with this podcast, you suggested that the vacuum in leadership over

carbon emissions reductions brought about by Trump's election has in fact placed China at

centre stage. But why is that? Why exactly would a new US stance on climate policy or the

US stepping back from climate policy give China more influence on this

issue. Thanks, James. So when this international climate accord that we've alluded to in our last

podcast and the last feature we spoke about on this issue and this feature as well, so that's the

Paris climate agreement that was reached at the end of 2015 by 195

governments as well as the EU to cut carbon emissions. When that was agreed, the real sort of

clinching of the deal in terms of credibility hung in the balance of the fact that both the US and

China agreed to that deal, the world's two largest emitters.

And now, with the US being less certain on how that commitment will look over the next four years,

...