United States President Donald Trump said on Thursday his administration will launch talks to secure a more fair deal that will protect environment, American citizens and economy, after making the highly anticipated announcement that the country will exit the landmark Paris agreement on climate change.
"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," the president said at a press conference, noted that the deal had "disadvantaged America and vastly diminished economic production."
Trump voiced readiness to talk with Democrats to find "something better than the Paris accord", noting that any new agreement would have to stipulate an equal share of burdens and responsibilities by nations across the world.
The president voiced confidence that the US will remain a leader in environmental issues, countering concerns voiced by the business community, including energy companies, that the pullout would strip them of access to fast-growing clean energy markets.
The world’s second largest emitter of greenhouse gases thus joins Nicaragua and Syria that did not sign the agreement in the first place.
