BERLIN (Sputnik) — On Thursday, US President Donald Trump said that US would no longer be part of the Paris climate agreement because it hurts the US economy while unfairly benefiting other nations. The move has been widely criticized.
However, the Germany-US cooperation will remain close despite the United States' withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement, Seibert said.
"Even after the US withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement, it is quite clear that the ties between Germany and the US are extremely close. Not only between politicians, but also in economics, science, culture," Seibert said at a briefing.
After a meeting with Trump, European Council chief Donald Tusk said that the stances of Washington and Brussels on climate and trade still differ. Moreover, newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron during bilateral talks called on the US leader to review his stance on the Paris climate deal.
In April, Trump once again lashed out at "one-sided" Paris climate deal, saying it doesn't benefit America, and promised to make a "big decision" regarding the agreement. Trump stated that full compliance with the agreement would reduce US GDP by $2.5 trillion over the next decade, explaining that it means "factories and plants closing all over the country."
The Paris climate agreement within the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, championed by former US President Barack Obama, was signed in 2015 by 195 countries and ratified by 147. It aims to hold the increase in average global temperature to below 2 degrees above pre-industrial level by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, with all the signatory states agreeing to reduce or limit their greenhouse gas emissions.
Syria and Nicaragua are reportedly the only two states who didn't sign the climate agreement.
