03 June, 2017
Possibly. But on climate change, what was already a daunting task has just become even harder, and the world, nearly overnight, is a poorer place.
"Of course, it would be better if the USA were to stay in the Paris Agreement as is", Vestas spokesman Morten Dyrholm said in a statement.
"Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world", Musk said Thursday on Twitter, shortly after the president announced from the Rose Garden that he would begin the process of leaving the accord. "Europe and its strong partners all around the world are ready to lead the way".
"Those who choose to remain on the outside will miss a historic opportunity for citizens, the planet and the economy", said Antonio Tajani, president of the European Parliament. Trump faced criticism last week after he appeared to push aside the prime minister of Montenegro in order to move to the front of a group of North Atlantic Treaty Organisation leaders.
The New York mayor, Bill de Blasio, tweeted an image of city hall and promised that the city would "honour the goals" of the Paris agreement.
Environmental NGOs were scathing in their reaction.
The global agreement pushed parties to make voluntary emissions reduction targets every five years, as well as pooling money into a green climate fund to assist developing countries to deal with climate change.
With Trump's action, the United States will walk away from almost every other nation in the world on one of the pressing global issues of the 21st century. It's unclear why the US would need to start such negotiations given that the climate agreement gave each country the ability to set its own targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
"In a amusing way it could because it is giving the Chinese, the Europeans, New Zealand. all countries the opportunity to step into the breach and take leadership".
Even at the 11th hour, efforts to dissuade Trump continued.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said this week it would be a "morally criminal act" if the world doesn't do its part to stop climate change.
Trump announced Thursday (June 1) that he will do just that, prompting an avowal by Musk to follow through on his threat.
The Hindu American Foundation said the United States squandered global leadership role. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell applauded Trump "for dealing yet another significant blow to the Obama administration's assault on domestic energy production and jobs".
Leaders of a cluster of small remote island states in the Pacific, which are at the forefront of the battle against climate change and already suffering the effects of unpredictable weather, expressed deep disappointment at the controversial move.
Under the pact, the United States-the world's second biggest carbon emitter behind China-had committed to reduce its emissions by 26 percent to 28 percent from 2005 levels by 2025.
It is good to learn that many major countries, for example the EU, Australia, Canada, have indicated that a USA withdrawal from the Paris Agreement would have no impact upon them and that they would continue to honor the agreement as it was signed.
Chinese officials said the move would damage trust among leading powers in multilateral negotiations.
Senator Ed Markey said Trump was breaking a promise to the world to combat climate change in order to keep an empty campaign promise to the coal industry.
And supporters of the agreement in the USA, which was painstakingly negotiated under the Obama administration, argued that even if that was possible, the damage to America's reputation had already been done.
South Africa called the USA pullout "an abdication of global responsibility.
Therefore, in order to fulfil my solemn duty to protect America and its citizens, the United States will withdraw from the Paris climate accord", he said, and vowed to stand with the American people against "draconian" global deal.
