China will host an additional round of climate talks in October in Tianjin before UN members convene in Mexico's Cancun at the end of this year for a climate change summit, a senior UN official and a Chinese policy insider said on Sunday.

China and the UN are working closely to prepare for the Tianjin meeting, although Chinese authorities have not officially announced it, said UN Under-Secretary General Achim Steiner.

"China's gesture is quite positive," Steiner told China Daily on Sunday when he attended green events at the Expo 2010 Shanghai.

Achim Steiner,UN under-secretary general [China Daily]

"China will introduce some new ideas and opportunities to move the negotiation forward," said Steiner, who is also executive administrator of the United Nations Environment Programme.

Steiner said that "by hosting a UN meeting, it doesn't mean China, as host government, will determine the negotiation results.

However, as a UN member and host, China can make a "great difference" while UN committees and work groups prepare for the October event.

"Fruitful results in Cancun rely on efforts from all members," Steiner said.

The Copenhagen climate change summit itself was not a total failure even though the Copenhagen Accord is not a legally binding agreement, he said.

"We should work to translate targets and projects made in Copenhagen into formal instruments to fight global warming," Steiner said.

He Jiankun, vice-chairman of the China Experts Panel on Climate Change, confirmed to China Daily that Tianjin is set to host an extra session of UN climate talks in October and the additional meeting will be the last one leading up to the Cancun conference.

"The extra session was added as all believe more preparatory talks would help nations reach more agreements during the year-end negotiations, on which great hope is built," He said. The specific dates of the Tianjin conference are not finalized, he said.

Before the Tianjin meeting, UN members will also hold climate change talks in Bonn from Aug 2 to 6. The Cancun conference will take place from Nov 29 to Dec 10.