After Japan, South Korea announces plans for carbon neutrality by 2050

South Korea is one the most fossil-fuel-reliant economies in the world but that has not stopped the country's President from establishing a target of complete carbon neutrality by 2050. The announcement from Moon Jae-in comes just a day after Japanese PM Yoshihide Suga announced plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions to zero by the year 2050.

The announcement from two of Asia's biggest economies is a shot in the arm in the fight against climate change and could also be a big boost for electric vehicles as such vehicles are a key weapon in the battle against emissions. "Together with the international community, we will actively respond to climate change and target carbon neutrality by 2050,"said Moon.

South Korea aims to have 1.13 million electric vehicles (EVs) and 200,000 hydrogen cars on the roads by 2025, up from 91,000 and 5,000 each by the end of 2019, Moon had previously said. The government also plans to massively boost supporting infrastructure.

The other measures either already put into place or being contemplated are remodelling public buildings, creating urban forests, recycling, establishing a foundation for new and renewable energy, and creating low-carbon energy industrial complexes to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

Japan too is firming up towards reducing its dependence on fossil fuels, especially in the mobility sphere. Some estimates suggest that as many as 210,000 EVs could be sold in the country each year by the time 2030 dawns. And while Japan had previously committed towards bringing down emissions to zero in the second half of this century, a definite dateline of 2050 - which brings it and South Korea at par with European Union - has been widely applauded.

China, the world's largest auto market and one of the leading global economies, plans to do the same by 2060.

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