Macron burnishes credentials as leader in fight against global warming
Emmanuel Macron, the French president, yesterday claimed the vacant position of world leader against global warming as he rallied nations, bankers and philanthropists to promote greater investment in countries at most risk from the effects of climate change.
The meeting in Paris came two years after nearly 200 governments agreed to end their reliance on fossil fuels, and in the notable absence of Donald Trump, who pulled the United States out of the deal in June.
Mr Macron, 39, did not invite Mr Trump to the One Planet summit, but his absence dominated proceedings. Replacements from the US who did turn up – including Bill Gates, Elon Musk, film star Sean Penn and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger – lined up to take pot shots at the president over his record.
“Donald Trump pulled Donald Trump out of the Paris Agreement, so don’t worry about that,” said Mr Schwarzenegger. “The private sector didn’t drop out, the public sector didn’t drop out, the universities didn’t drop out, the scientists didn’t drop out, the engineers didn’t drop out … no one else dropped out.”
The jabs and jibes continued from other senior US figures, including former US secretary of state John Kerry, who said that the world would shift to cleaner fuels and reduce emissions regardless of what the Trump administration did.
Michael Bloomberg, the former New York mayor, said environmentalists owed Trump a debt of gratitude for acting as a rallying point for action on climate change. He said a private-sector coalition that promises to honour the 2015 goals represented half the US economy.
The criticisms of Mr Trump came as organisers sought to show that progress had been made despite his withdrawal from the Paris climate accord based on his “America first” principles of promoting trade and belief that global warming is a hoax.
It was also an opportunity for Mr Macron to burnish his credentials as the co-ordinator of international efforts to tackle climate change in the absence of US leadership.
On Monday, Mr Macron awarded grants to 18 climate scientists, most of them based in the US, to relocate to France for the rest of Mr Trump’s term in office. The grant-awarding contest was announced hours after Mr Trump pulled out of the treaty.
The two men have previous form. Mr Macron demonstrated his resolve in dealing with the United States in his first face-to-face meeting with Mr Trump in Brussels in May when he refused to let go of his hand during a long handshake in front of the cameras.
Mr Macron later described the handshake as “a moment of truth” and told French media he wanted to show “he would not make small concessions, not even symbolic ones”.
Mr Macron hosted leading world philanthropists yesterday to encourage more climate-related investment.
The meeting drew significant financial pledges towards renewable energy but was largely symbolic, rather than announcing any significant shifts in international policy.
A group of 225 investment funds managing more than US$26 trillion (Dh95.42tn) in assets promised to pressure companies to curb greenhouse gas emissions and to disclose climate-related financial information. The group says it will focus on 100 of the world’s largest corporate greenhouse gas emitters.