AKIPRESS.COM - China has pledged for the first time to take firm action on climate change, telling a UN summit that its emissions, the world's highest, would soon peak.

Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli also said China would make its economy much more carbon efficient by 2020.

US President Barack Obama said climate change was moving faster than efforts to address it, and the US and China had a responsibility to lead other nations.

The summit was the largest high-level climate meeting since 2009.

Hosted by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, it aimed to encourage 120 member states to sign up to a comprehensive new global climate agreement at talks in Paris next year.

As he closed the summit, Mr Ban hailed the meeting, saying "never before have so many leaders gathered to commit to action on climate change".