Mother Earth pledge
US in the cold as China, Europe unite on climate
CHINA and Europe have pledged to unite to save “Mother Earth” in the face of US President Donald’s Trump’s decision to take the world’s largest carbon polluter out of the Paris climate change pact.
Others including Russia, India and Mexico quickly signalled their commitment to the accord, although a Kremlin aide said it would not be viable without US participation.
France said it would work with the US states and cities which have broken with Trump’s decisions to keep up the fight against climate change.
The World Meteorological Organisation sought to quantify Trump’s decision, estimating that US withdrawal from the emissions-cutting accord could add 0.3ºC to global temperatures by the end of the century in a worst-case scenario.
Trump, tapping into the America First message he used when he was elected president last year, said he would withdraw the US from the landmark 2015 agreement on tackling global warming. He said participating would undermine the US economy, wipe out US jobs, weaken national sovereignty and put the country at a permanent disadvantage to the other countries.
The move was met with a mix of dismay and anger across the world – from many in industry as well as governments, which scrambled to renew their commitment to curbing global warming. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the accord was needed “to preserve our Creation”. In Paris, the venue for the pact, French President Emmanuel Macron turned Trump’s “Make America Great Again” campaign slogan on its head, saying in a rare English-language statement that it was time to “make the planet great again”.
A long-scheduled meeting yesterday between Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and top EU officials in Brussels was dominated by Trump’s decision. It ended with a joint statement pledging full implementation of the Paris deal, committing China and the EU to cutting back on fossil fuels.
China has emerged as Europe’s unlikely partner underlining Trump’s isolation on many issues. Russia struck a rare negative note. While Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich said he did not think Trump’s decision would prompt Russia to rethink its own stance, the Kremlin suggested the withdrawal could be fatal to the pact. – Reuters
ONE of the world’s most visionary business leaders, Tesla founder Elon Musk, who grew up in South Africa, has said he is resigning in protest from a White House business council that advises US President Donald Trump.
His action is in response to Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris climate treaty. Musk said: “Climate change is real. Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world.”
Tesla is at the forefront of developing products that will provide clean energy, through battery-powered cars, homes and solar energy.
This is the technology of the future for the planet and is especially important in countries like the US, India and China, which are among the biggest contributors to global emissions.
Part of the agreement is that developed countries will pay towards helping developing countries bear the cost of going green. This is too much for the current US president. Trump says he is putting the US first and wants the treaty renegotiated. Most of the almost 200 countries that have signed have said there will be no renegotiation.
Critics are saying the US will fall behind while relying on outdated energy options, like coal, and this will put the well-being of future generations at risk, in the US and the world.
Many countries have condemned the largely symbolic gesture, as have major cities like New York and Washington, and states like California.
US corporates, including the oil, tech, motor manufacturing and finance sectors, have voiced their opposition to the White House decision.
The agreement comes into force in 2020, when Trump will be standing for re-election. It will be interesting to see what impact the proposed withdrawal will have on his chances.
As a developing country, South Africa, rightly, said the global effort in curbing climate change and addressing its impacts needed urgent action.
The world must move on ahead in trying to find solutions to global warming, and work with those in the US who are not blinded by short-term selfishness and greed.