U.S.-China Clash Threatens Fix to Climate Crisis, Paulson Says

(Bloomberg) -- Former Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson is issuing a stark warning about the U.S.’s rising friction with China: If the two superpowers can’t find common ground, humanity stands little chance of defeating climate change and other global perils.

“This is a very difficult relationship right now and it’s escalating downward at a dangerous rate,” Paulson said in a Friday interview with Bloomberg Television’s David Westin. The U.S. and China need to figure out how to mange their conflicts, so they can “work together to solve global problems and I put climate change and the environment at the top of that,” he added.

Paulson now runs the Paulson Institute, which aims to foster a relationship between the U.S. and China that boosts global stability. The focus of his Bloomberg interview was a new Paulson Institute study that makes the case for investing in bio-diversity in order to fight de-forestation and protect species from extinction.

The health and economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic underscores the need to defend bio-diversity, Paulson said. There is strong evidence that the illness was spread to humans from animals, a risk that will only grow as we continue to destroy natural habitats, he said.

“There is no doubt that the destruction of natural capital has brought wild life closer to humanity,” Paulson said. “This really increases the risk of diseases.”

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