Could US reverse Paris climate deal exit? China hopes so

World
Europe

China hopes the United States will reverse its decision to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement, a senior envoy said on Tuesday, days after US officials vowed to play a constructive role at an upcoming global climate meeting in Germany.

Some countries have suggested the US should be sidelined at the 195-nation summit scheduled to take place in Bonn on November 6-17, after President Donald Trump announced in June that he would pull the US out of the Paris deal.

Xie Zhenhua, China's special representative on climate change, attends a press briefing. /Xinhua Photo

However, no country can officially leave the agreement before November 2020 – so the US still has a place at the table as talks over rules for the agreement get underway.

China's Special Representative on Climate Change Xie Zhenhua said Beijing is willing to step up cooperation with the US in climate change negotiations, Xinhua reported on Tuesday.

Xie added that China is willing to enhance cooperation with the US in clean energy utilization, and energy and resource conservation, as well as carbon capture and storage.

Could the US stay in the Paris deal?

The Paris Agreement sets a global target of keeping the average temperature rise no higher than two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Syria is the only country not to have ratified the agreement.

President Barack Obama announced that the US would ratify the climate pact while in China in September 2016, ahead of the G20 Summit in Hangzhou.

Chinese President Xi Jinping (C), then US President Barack Obama (R) and then Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon attend the deposit of instruments of joining the Paris Agreement in Hangzhou, China on September 3, 2016. /Xinhua Photo

Trump said he would withdraw the US from the deal in June 2017, but cannot formally do so until November 2020 – when the next presidential election will take place.

Reuters reported on October 28 that US allies, including France, Canada and Britain, remained hopeful of persuading the US president to reverse his decision.

Trump has suggested that the US could be willing to stay in the painstakingly negotiated agreement under new terms, a sentiment echoed by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

"The president said he is open to finding those conditions where we can remain engaged with others on what we all agree is still a challenging issue," Tillerson told CBS in September.

However, the White House rejected a Wall Street Journal report in September suggesting US officials were looking for ways to avoid withdrawing from the pact.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders insisted the US position on the Paris deal had "not changed" in a September tweet. /Twitter Screenshot

Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that the US position “has not changed” and the country would withdraw unless it gets “pro-America terms.”

The decision by Trump – who campaigned on a pro-coal platform – has given rise to climate coalitions including the “We Are Still In” movement, a mass grouping of US political leaders and businesses; and America’s Pledge, led by California Governor Jerry Brown and former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg.

The UN Climate Change Conference - November 2017 will take place on November 6-17 in Bonn, Germany and will be presided over by the Government of Fiji.