United States to join climate talks despite Paris accord exit

"The United States will continue to participate in worldwide climate change negotiations and meetings.to protect U.S. interests and ensure all future policy options remain open to the administration", said the statement.

The United States has submitted its formal communication indicating it will withdraw from the Paris Climate agreement as soon as possible, the US State Department said in a press release on Friday.

The U.S. will continue to participate in global climate negotiations, including the upcoming United Nations meeting on climate change "to protect U.S. interests and ensure all future policy options remain open to the administration".

The note, a largely symbolic move, said Washington would remain in the talks process. Continued American presence at such talks is to "protect US interests and ensure all future policy options remain open to the administration", the statement says.

The earliest date for the United States to completely withdraw from the agreement is November 4, 2020, around the time of the next U.S. presidential election. That stance drew umbrage from world leaders, including those from France, Germany and Italy who have called the agreement "irreversible".

Whoever is the U.S. president in that year could then decide to rejoin the agreement.

Observers said they doubted the administration truly meant to renegotiate the climate deal.

"In order to fulfill my solemn duty to protect America and its citizens, the United States will withdraw from the Paris climate accord, but begin negotiations to re-enter either the Paris accord or an entirely new transaction on terms that are fair to the United States, its businesses, its workers, its people, its taxpayers", Trump said at the time.