China and the European Union (EU) has announced in a joint draft statement that they are planning to commit to the Paris climate pact and to free trade as a response to US President Donald Trump's rejection of the climate accord and his protectionist policies. German Chancellor Angela Merkel also said that the US became an unreliable partner now.
In the draft statement obtained by Bloomberg, China and EU are preparing the document to give additional heft talks as a response to Trump's possible decision of withdrawing from the Paris climate pact. The additional heft includes Chinese Premier Li Keqiang last Thursday and Friday in Brussels.
In a report published by BBC, Trump is so far leaning on pulling out the US from the Paris climate pact after then US President Barack Obama joined the deal in cutting carbon emissions for environmental concerns. China and EU plays a huge part in the climate-change agreement as they are in line with the US on countries emitting a large amount of carbon.
Moreover, reports also suggest that Trump wants to withdraw from the Paris climate pact after other leaders from the Group of Seven, which includes some countries in EU, failed to win him over at a summit in Italy last week. With what happened, German Chancellor Angela Merkel was prompted to say that the US became an unreliable partner to other superpower countries like China.
The draft also said that EU and China want climate change and clean energy as what the Paris climate pact says. This is in order to "become the main pillar of their bilateral partnership, including in their economic relations. Moreover, they want to make Trump realize that it is necessary to "recognize the importance of developing global free trade and investment."
EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said that he has already received phone calls from other countries showing interest in replacing the US in the Paris climate pact. He said that regarding Trump's decision, the accord that was agreed by China, EU, and other members will continue despite the hegemonic country's decision.
