2 June, 2017, 3:00 p.m., New Delhi

The Centre for Policy Research “Initiative on Climate Energy and Environment” shares the following comments on President Trump’s announcement of June 2017 announcing the US exit from the Paris Accord

“President Trump’s remarks reveal a disturbing lack of knowledge about the Paris Agreement. His contention that the Paris Agreement hamstrings the US while allowing India and China to increase their emissions is baffling. The Agreement allows every country to ‘nationally determine’ its contribution (NDC), and, it does not oblige them to achieve these. Trump’s tenuous grasp on the fundamental tenets of the Agreement he just rejected bodes poorly for any future engagement with the US on climate change.’ said Prof. Lavanya Rajamani, Professor at the Centre for Policy Research

“President Trump’s assertion that he will renegotiate a fair deal for the US is also perplexing,” she added. “The Paris Agreement is remarkable for the extent to which it privileges sovereignty and national autonomy. The perceived ‘unfairness’ Trump alludes to stems not from an internationally prescribed target – the Paris Agreement contains none – but a ‘nationally determined’ contribution chosen by the previous US administration of its own volition. Renegotiating an Agreement that has near-universal buy-in, especially to accommodate a state that has revealed a less than passing familiarity with the Paris Agreement, is not an option.”

“India, a country whose citizens consume less than a tenth the electricity of an average American, is already turning its economy toward clean energy,” said Navroz K. Dubash, a Senior Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research. “Mr Trump fundamentally misunderstands the changes sweeping the global energy economy, while India, despite being a much poorer country, is leading this change. By justifying the US exit from Paris in part by claiming that India will only act with international financial support, Mr. Trump is hiding behind India’s poor who, meanwhile, are already making the transition to clean energy that Mr. Trump scorns as unviable.”

“As a climate vulnerable country, India needs to stand with the EU and China to hold the line on the Paris Accord,” argued Dubash. “It is not for the world to adjust to America’s misguided policies, but for concerned Americans to forge a more sensible approach at home to the only climate treaty we have.”

Contact
Lavanya Rajamani: lrajamani@gmail.com. +49-151-71668944
Navroz K. Dubash: ndubash@gmail.com. +91-9811805438

About the Initiative on Climate, Energy and Environment
The Initiative on Climate, Energy and Environment at the Centre for Policy Research produces research, informs public opinion and generates debate on climate policy at international, national and sub-national levels.

About Centre for Policy Research
The Centre for Policy Research (CPR) has been one of India’s leading public policy think tanks since 1973. The Centre is a non-profit, independent institution dedicated to conducting research that contributes to a more robust public discourse about the structures and processes that shape life in India. CPR focuses on five different thematic clusters: Economic Policy Analysis; Environmental Law and Governance; Urbanization; International Relations and Security; Law, Regulation and the State.