G20 leaders back Paris climate change pact, despite US withdrawal
Joint statement by world leader points to US decision to withdraw from Paris climate change agreement while other countries see deal as ‘irreversible’
People protest in Hamburg against Donald Trump's position on climate change
Leaders of 19 nations at the G20 summit in Germany have renewed their pledge to implement the landmark Paris deal on climate change, despite the United States withdrawing from it.
After lengthy negotiations that stretched well into Saturday, the final G20 statement notes US President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris deal while stating that all the other major global economies still support the international effort to slow down global warning.
German chancellor Angela Merkel said she “deplored” Trump’s decision to withdraw from the deal and added that she did not share the view of British Prime Minister Theresa May that Washington could decide to rejoin the pact.
“I think it’s very clear that we could not reach consensus, but the differences were not papered over, they were clearly stated,” she told reporters. “It’s absolutely clear it is not a common position.”
The G20 communique reads: “We take note of the decision of the United States of America to withdraw from the Paris agreement…The leaders of the other G20 members state that that the Paris agreement is irreversible…we reaffirm out strong commitment to the Paris agreement”.
The US managed to insert text referencing fossil fuels which read: “The United States of America states it will endeavor to work closely with other countries to help them access and use fossil fuels more cleanly and efficiently”.
World leaders in Hamburg managed to agree on practically every aspect of the joint statement, but the final text was held up by the US’ contrarian approach to climate change.
In June, Trump – who has enthusiastically touted coal and oil extraction – announced that the US will exit from the Paris agreement, which aims to avoid dangerous global warming of more than 2C compared to the pre-industrial period.
The strongest proponents of the deal, including Merkel and French president Emmanuel Macron, have attempted to shore up support for the 2015 agreement following Trump’s decision. Saudi Arabia and Indonesia were reportedly considering watering down their commitments to the deal but they ended up reiterating their support at the G20 summit.
A lengthy notice period means that the US withdrawal will not take place until November 2020. The US will become the only country in the world not signed up to the climate deal other than Nicaragua, which complained the deal wasn’t strong enough, and Syria, currently mired in a bloody civil war.
