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Slovenia warns of damage to Paris Agreement by Trump's climate policy change

Xinhua, March 31, 2017 Adjust font size:

The Slovenian Environment Ministry has expressed concern over U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order aimed at reversing his predecessor's efforts to address climate change, warning that the Paris climate agreement may be ruined.

According to the national Slovenian Press Agency (STA) on Friday, the ministry said if the Trump's decision overturning the measures taken by Barack Obama administration is implemented, "the U.S. will have a hard time meeting its goals set in the Paris climate agreement."

Trump signed on Tuesday the executive order, which the STA quoted the ministry as saying that runs contrary to the shared efforts of countries all over the world as part of the Paris Agreement.

The main target of the order is the so-called Clean Power Plan, a signature effort by Obama to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired power plants in keeping with promises of the 2015 landmark global climate deal known as Paris Agreement.

"The U.S. has thereby appeared to have excluded itself from the Paris agreement commitments, as it will be extremely difficult to replace the effects of the annulled regulation with any other potential measures," the ministry said.

But given that NGOs and legal experts in the U.S. have announced an appeal against the president's decision, the ministry maintains hope that the U.S. will not formally withdraw from the Paris Agreement.

White House spokesperson Sean Spicer said on Thursday that a decision on this would be made before the May G7 meeting, according to STA.

Given that the U.S. and China were seen as the driving forces of the 2015 Paris Agreement, "the U.S.'s moving away from the agreement's goals opens many very demanding questions on how to preserve the U.S.'s role in the joint global efforts" against climate change, the ministry was quoted.

The ministry also shares the concern of many other countries over the U.S. decision to reduce climate aid for developing countries.

"Without the necessary funding, which is key for a successful and efficient implementation of the Paris agreement, the ambitions of the whole Paris agreement are at risk," it said. Endit