EU to bypass Trump administration
after Paris climate agreement pullout
Brussels rejects Trump’s offer to
renegotiate landmark deal, as global politicians, business leaders and US state
governors criticise president
Daniel Boffey, Kate Connolly and Anushka Asthana
Friday 2 June 2017 13.08 BST First published on Friday 2
June 2017 08.11 BST
The European Union has rejected Donald Trump’s offer to
renegotiate the Paris climate agreement and pledged instead to bypass
Washington to work with US business leaders and state governors to implement
the historic accord’s commitments.
Less than 24 hours after the US president announced his
decision to withdraw from the 2015 agreement and strike a new, less ambitious
deal with the rest of the world, Brussels declared its outright refusal to
engage in such talks.
EU officials will instead cut out the White House to deal
directly with the US states and major corporations, many of whom have already
pledged to live by the terms forged in Paris.
In Britain, Theresa May faced criticism for not signing up
to a joint declaration by Germany, France and Italy in opposition to the US
move. A Downing Street source defended the prime minister, pointing out that
other countries including Japan and Canada had not signed up to the letter
either.
In 2015, nearly 200 countries agreed in Paris to curb
greenhouse gas emissions in order to prevent the runaway climate change that
would occur should temperatures spiral 2C or more above the pre-industrial era.
In a worst case scenario, the US withdrawal could add 0.3C
to global temperatures by the end of the century, the UN World Meteorological
Organisation said.
Donald Tusk, the president of the European council,
described Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris pact as a big mistake, but said the
fight against climate change would continue with or without the US.
“Strong transatlantic ties are far more important and far
more durable than the latest unfortunate decisions of the new administration,”
Tusk said, as he addressed a joint press conference with the Chinese prime
minister, Li Keqiang, at the end of an EU-China summit in Brussels.
“China and Europe have demonstrated solidarity with future
generations and responsibility for the whole planet,” Tusk added, in reference
to a joint EU-China statement that vowed to “step up” efforts on global
warming, including the raising of $100bn a year by 2020 to help poorer
countries cut emissions.
Li pointedly told reporters that China believed in abiding
by international rules. “There have been changes in the international situation
and there have been rising uncertainties and destabilising factors and in such
circumstances it is important for China-EU relations to become more stable”, he
said.
Miguel Arias Cañete, the European commissioner for climate
action, said the global agreement would not be allowed to fall at the whim of a
domestic election. “The Paris agreement is fit for purpose,” the Spanish politician
said, gripping a copy of the document that 195 countries have pledged to
support. “The Paris agreement is here to stay. The 29 articles of this Paris
agreement are not to be renegotiated. They are to be implemented. That’s what
the EU will do.”
He added: “The fight against climate change cannot depend on
the result of elections in one country of another. When a country signs an
international agreement it has to fulfil its commitments. There will be new
administrations. I’m pretty sure President Trump hasn’t read the articles of
this treaty. There is nothing to renegotiate here.”
Senior EU officials said they had been pleased by the
reaction of the leaders of corporate America and the federal states, with whom
they would now work, in a remarkable example of Trump’s isolation on the world
stage.
The US president’s decision had been met with a chorus of
disapproval from blue-chip companies including Facebook, Apple, Ford and
Microsoft.
A number of the governors of US states have also vowed to
ignore Washington. The mayor of Pittsburgh hit back against Trump, who had told
reporters on Thursday: “I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh,
not Paris.”
Bill Peduto wrote on Twitter: “Fact: Hillary Clinton
received 80% of the vote in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh stands with the world and
will follow Paris agreement. As the mayor of Pittsburgh, I can assure you that
we will follow the guidelines of the Paris agreement for our people, our
economy and future.”
Jeremy Corbyn accused May of a “dereliction of duty to our
country and our planet” for failing to issue a stronger condemnation of Trump,
after the PM expressed disappointment on Thursday. The Labour leader told an
election rally in York: “Given the chance to present a united front with our
international partners, she has instead opted for silence and subservience to
Donald Trump.”
The former Labour leader Ed Miliband told the BBC that May
was being “weak and feeble and spineless” for not being willing to condemn the
US president.
A Downing Street spokesperson said Trump had called May to
discuss the decision to withdraw and said the door remained open to future US
involvement in the deal.
“She [May] said the Paris agreement provides the right
global framework for protecting the prosperity and security of future
generations, while keeping energy affordable and secure for our citizens and
businesses,” the spokesperson said. “The president made clear that the door
remains open to future US involvement in the agreement.”
No other country is yet to show any sign that they intend to
ape Trump’s decision to split from the pact, of which only Nicaragua and Syria
stand outside. Vladimir Putin said in response to Trump’s announcement that he
wanted to “refine” the agreement from within.
Germany’s powerful car industry also claimed that Europe
would need to reassess its environmental standards to remain competitive after
the US withdrawal.
However, the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, showed no
signs that her resolve was weakening on the deal, insisting that Trump “can’t
and won’t stop all those of us who feel obliged to protect the planet”.
She added the move by the US was “extremely regrettable and
that’s putting it very mildly”.
Merkel, speaking at a press conference in Berlin, said
Germany would not sway from the goals set out in the Paris agreement. “Nothing
can or will stop us,” she said. “The road – there’s no doubt about it – is
stony, but I am also convinced of the fact we cannot retrace our steps.”
She said there were many other partners willing to work
together and was “enthused” by the response from US companies who were
supportive of the deal. “We need this Paris agreement in order to save our
creation,” she said.
India, despite facing the challenge of meeting the energy
needs of millions of people who do not have electricity, firmly stood by the
Paris agreement. The energy minister, Piyush Goyal, said: “India’s resolve to
take up the leadership of saving the planet from climate change while others
abrogate their leadership.”
Michael Bloomberg: US states and
businesses will still meet Paris targets
Former New York mayor, now UN cities
and climate ambassador, says Trump may have withdrawn from Paris accord but
American people haven’t
Michael Bloomberg says Americans
don’t need Washington to met the Paris accord targets.
Press Association
Saturday 3 June 2017 05.29 BST
The United States will meet its Paris accord greenhouse gas
targets despite Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the agreement, former New York
mayor Michael Bloomberg has said.
A decision by President Trump to pull the US out of Parisand
seek renegotiated terms “fair” to America has drawn widespread international
condemnation.
But Bloomberg, currently the United Nations special envoy
for cities and climate change, said work would continue to reduce emissions
despite Trump’s statement.
“The US will meet our
Paris commitment and through a partnership among American cities, states, and
businesses, we will seek to remain part of the Paris Agreement process,” he
said.
“The American government may have pulled out of the
agreement, but the American people remain committed to it – and we will meet
our targets.
“Americans don’t need Washington to meet our Paris
commitment and Americans are not going to let Washington stand in the way of
fulfilling it.
“That’s the message mayors, governors, and business leaders
all across the US have been sending.”
The Paris accord commits countries to holding global
temperature rises to “well below” 2C above pre-industrial levels, which will
require global emissions to be cut to net zero by the second half of the
century.
Scientists have warned that a failure to curb dangerous climate
change will lead to sea level rises, more intense storms and flooding, more
extreme droughts, water shortages and heatwaves as well as massive loss of
wildlife and reduction in crop yields, potentially sparking conflict and mass
migration.
Despite the decision by the US, the second biggest polluter
after China, to pull out of the deal, many analysts suggest the shift to a
low-carbon economy is now unstoppable, with renewable prices tumbling and new
clean technology being developed and deployed.
Trump’s decision prompted criticism from many US business
leaders, including clean-tech entrepreneur and Tesla chief executive Elon Musk
and Robert Iger, chief executive of the Walt Disney company, who said they had
resigned from the president’s advisory council over the issue.
Announcing his decision on Thursday, Trump claimed the Paris
deal allows countries such as China and India to carry on polluting at the
expense of the US economy and jobs.
He said the US would stop implementing measures to meet its
commitments under the agreement to cut emissions by 26-28% on 2005 levels by
2025, and end funding for poor countries to cope with climate change.
In a press conference after a summit between the EU and
China, European council president Donald Tusk said the bloc was stepping up
co-operation with China on climate change.
“Which means that today, China and Europe have demonstrated
solidarity with future generations and responsibility for the whole planet,”
Tusk said.
He said the US decision to leave the Paris agreement was a
“big mistake”, bigger than its failure to ratify the previous international
climate deal, the Kyoto Protocol, because the new agreement – which covers all
countries – was fairer.
“But the fight against climate change, and all the research,
innovation and technological progress it will bring, will continue, with or
without the US,” he said.
ANÁLISE
Acordo de Paris: renegociar o quê?
Clara Barata
2 de Junho de 2017, 20:19
https://www.publico.pt/2017/06/02/mundo/noticia/renegociar-o-que-1774414
Há muitas incoerências no discurso em que Donald Trump
anunciou a saída dos Estados Unidos do Acordo do Clima de Paris e a ideia,
aparentemente benigna, de querer “renegociar” a participação norte-americana é
uma delas. Os europeus já lhe responderam que não estão abertos a reabrir a
caixa de Pandora. “Não vamos renegociar um acordo menos ambicioso. De maneira
nenhuma”, respondeu o Presidente francês Emmanuel Macron”, na sua mensagem
vídeo de resposta a Trump. A sua mensagem “Make our planet great again” quebrou
recordes no Twitter.
“Não há nenhuma base legal [que leve à renegociação]. É uma
mensagem política, ponto final. Diria mesmo que é um melodrama político vazio
de conteúdo”, afirmou Christiana Figueres, ex-secretária executiva da Convenção
Quadro da ONU das Alterações Climáticas.
Macron expressou a posição dos europeus, que não se
prestaram a colaborar no conto do vigário do renascimento do carvão de Trump,
cuja visão económica parece mais digna dos grandes empresários americanos do
século XIX que ficaram conhecidos como “barões ladrões”.
O Acordo de Paris vingou porque não é vinculativo, ao
contrário do Protocolo de Quioto. Em Paris, os Estados concordaram em prometer
metas de redução das suas emissões de dióxido de carbono, consoante as suas
circunstâncias nacionais, com o objectivo de impedir que a subida da
temperatura média do planeta não exceda 2 graus Celsius acima dos valores
anteriores à Revolução Industrial. Acima disto, prevê-se que ocorram alterações
climáticas graves e irreversíveis.
O facto de não ser vinculativo – e de não ser um tratado,
não tendo quaisquer implicações com a soberania dos EUA e, por isso, não ter de
passar pelo Congresso norte-americano, onde os tratados internacionais
encontram sempre dificuldades – foi uma insistência da diplomacia de Barack
Obama. E dificilmente os EUA conseguiriam um acordo mais favoráveis que este.
A ideia de que o Acordo de Paris custaria 2,7 milhões de
empregos até 2025, propagada por Trump, foi desmentida em inúmeros media
locais: baseia-se num estudo com métodos muito discutíveis, feito por uma
entidade financiada por empresas ligadas à exploração de carvão – o lobby que o
Pres idente mais favoreceu – e Charles Koch, um financiador de candidatos
radical.
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