‘A colossal own goal’: Trump’s exit from global climate treaties will have little effect outside US : Shared by Tom McDermott

Through the first and now second Trump term in the White House, the US has frequently played the 'spoiler role' in climate talks by vetoing final statements and obstructing working groups. By withdrawing from climate organizations, the US will no longer be able to play that role and may find that other delegations to talks are relieved that discussions can move ahead without interference.  The same may be true in other UN fora from which the US is withdrawing. 
Tom

'A Colossal Own Goal': Trump's Exit from Global Climate Treaties Will Have Little Effect Outside US

By Fiona Harvey and Oliver Milman

The Guardian

January 9, 2026

Click here for the article: 

Summary

President Trump's withdrawal from the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) will have minimal impact on global climate action, according to international observers, though it will harm American interests. The withdrawal means the US will no longer have a seat at annual Conference of the Parties (Cop) meetings and will lose its veto over IPCC policy summaries. 

UN climate chief Simon Stiell called it "a colossal own goal which will leave the US less secure and less prosperous," warning it will mean less affordable energy, food, transport and insurance for Americans as renewables continue to become cheaper than fossil fuels. 

Global investment in low-carbon energy now exceeds $2 trillion annually, outstripping fossil fuel investment by two to one. Renewable energy grew 15% last year, accounting for over 90% of new power generation capacity, while electric vehicles represent about one-fifth of new car sales globally. Legal scholars are divided on whether Trump can unilaterally withdraw from a treaty the Senate ratified 92-0 in 1992, and questions remain about whether future presidents could rejoin without a two-thirds Senate vote. The US experienced at least $115 billion in extreme weather costs last year, with wildfires in California forcing evacuation of over 200,000 people in January 2025.

 
Quotes

"It is a colossal own goal which will leave the US less secure and less prosperous. It will mean less affordable energy, food, transport and insurance for American households and businesses as renewables keep getting cheaper than fossil fuels, as climate-driven disasters hit American crops, businesses and infrastructure harder each year and as oil, coal and gas volatility drives more conflicts, regional instability and forced migration." - Simon Stiell, UN climate chief

"The climate movement is bigger than any one nation. African nations and the global south will continue pushing for climate justice, demanding that wealthy polluters honour their historical responsibilities, and building the clean energy future our people deserve." - Mohamed Adow, director of Power Shift Africa

"This commercial dynamism is happening increasingly between China and the global south. These economic forces provide a more meaningful counter to Trump [than geopolitics]." - Li Shuo, director of the China Climate Hub at the Asia Society Policy Institute

"The economics of the [low-carbon] transition look ever more attractive. Every time we look at the science it looks more worrying, and every time we look at the technology it is more encouraging. In an increasingly insecure world, countries and industries will be seeking independence from fossil fuels and the great volatility such dependence brings. In a world with sluggish growth, countries and industries will be seeking new opportunities. These will be in the technologies of the 21st century, not the 19th and 20th centuries." - Nicholas Stern, economist

"The Palm Beach area of Florida, where Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence is located, is among the areas most vulnerable to sea level rise due to global warming. The US is not immune to this problem." - Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, former vice-chair of the IPCC