Australia has called on China to do more to tackle climate change, despite not having much of a plan of its own.

Australia shelved its emissions trading scheme until 2013 and it is not clear if the federal government’s pre-election climate policy, which has not been released, will cut greenhouse gas emissions.

But Foreign Minister Stephen Smith sought to turn the attention on China. Speaking at a conference at the Australian National University (ANU), he said China needs to take a leadership role on climate change.

“It is appropriate that China  as the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter and as a country vulnerable to the impacts of global warming – takes on a greater leadership role on climate change,” he said.

China is now the largest emitter of greenhouse gases per year, surpassing the United States.

China has taken action, however. It  set a 2020 target to slash the emissions intensity of its economy and has set national and regional greenhouse targets for this year.