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Paris Climate Agreement Withdrawal: Rejecting Global Climate Commitments

Trump announced the withdrawal in the Rose Garden, framing it as a defense of American workers against an agreement he claimed was economically harmful. The U.S. had committed under Paris to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 26–28% below 2005 levels by 2025. Trump claimed the accord would cost 2.7 million jobs — a figure taken from a Koch-funded study that most economists disputed. The U.S. was the only major nation to withdraw. The formal withdrawal process took three years under treaty terms; the U.S. officially left the day after the 2020 election. President Biden rejoined on his first day in office.

Record summary

Grade

Grade 4 of 5: Critical Rights and Rule-of-Law Concern

Systematic actions that undermine fundamental constitutional or international legal protections at the structural level. Scale and definitions

Status
Concluded
Incident date
Record updated
Location
Washington, D.C.
Category
Foreign Policy & War
Legal posture
Reported
War-crime classification
Enabling conduct
Verification
Independently verified
ICC relevance
No
Sources
4 cited
Stable ID
trump-paris-climate-withdrawal-2017
Victims
Current and future populations of countries and communities most vulnerable to climate change impacts — including low-lying island nations, coastal communities, people in extreme heat zones, and populations dependent on agricultural systems disrupted by climate instability
Alleged responsible parties
  • Donald Trump, President; directed U.S. withdrawal from Paris Climate Agreement over objections of virtually all allied governments— White House

Key points

  • The U.S. was the world's second-largest greenhouse gas emitter; withdrawal removed the country with the largest cumulative historical emissions from global climate accountability frameworks
  • Trump claimed the Paris Agreement would cost 2.7 million U.S. jobs by 2025 — a figure from a study commissioned by the American Council for Capital Formation, a group funded by Koch Industries; most mainstream economists disputed the figure and found the net employment impact neutral or positive for clean energy sectors
  • When Trump announced withdrawal, 195 countries had signed the Paris Agreement; the U.S. became one of three non-parties (with Nicaragua and Syria); both Nicaragua and Syria later signed, leaving the U.S. alone among major nations
  • Trump's withdrawal also eliminated U.S. contributions to the Green Climate Fund, which had pledged $3 billion to help developing nations adapt to and mitigate climate change; Trump halted payments after $1 billion was transferred
  • The formal withdrawal took effect on November 4, 2020 — one day after the U.S. presidential election — because the Paris Agreement treaty process required three years from ratification to withdrawal; Biden signed an executive order rejoining on January 20, 2021, his first day in office
  • Analysis by the Rhodium Group found that U.S. greenhouse gas emissions increased in 2018 and 2019 during the withdrawal period; emission reductions achieved were largely due to market forces (natural gas replacing coal) rather than climate policy

Overview

On June 1, 2017, Trump announced the United States would withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement. In his Rose Garden speech, he characterized the agreement as an attack on American workers and said he was elected to represent Pittsburgh, not Paris. (The mayor of Pittsburgh responded the same day that Pittsburgh had voted 80% for Clinton and supported the Paris Agreement.)

The U.S. was the only country to withdraw. Both Nicaragua and Syria — which had originally refused to sign — subsequently joined, leaving the U.S. entirely alone among nations.

The Economic Argument

Trump cited a study projecting 2.7 million U.S. job losses as the central economic justification. The study was commissioned by an organization funded by Koch Industries, one of the largest private fossil fuel companies in the United States. Most mainstream economists found the projections substantially overstated or the methodology flawed.

The clean energy sector was the fastest-growing employment sector in the United States during this period. The Paris Agreement did not require the U.S. to close coal plants by regulation — it set a national emissions target and allowed each country to determine its own policy approach.

The Green Climate Fund

In addition to withdrawing from the Agreement itself, Trump halted U.S. payments to the Green Climate Fund — a mechanism for wealthy nations to help developing countries adapt to and mitigate climate change. The U.S. had pledged $3 billion; $1 billion had been transferred when payments stopped.

The nations with the lowest per-capita historical emissions and the least capacity to adapt are also typically the nations most severely affected by climate change.

The Three-Year Clock

Under the Paris Agreement's terms, parties could not withdraw for three years after ratification. The United States ratified in September 2016. The earliest possible withdrawal notification was November 4, 2019. The withdrawal took effect exactly one year after notification: November 4, 2020 — one day after the U.S. election.

Biden rejoined the same day he took office.

International law engaged

InstrumentProvisionWhat it protects or prohibits
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate ChangeParis AgreementWithdrawal from the Paris Agreement eliminated U.S. nationally determined contributions to limiting global temperature increase and removed the world's second-largest emitter from the framework of collective climate action

Update log

  1. Updated with formal withdrawal taking effect.

Sequence of events

  1. Trump announces Paris withdrawal in Rose Garden speech

    Trump announces the U.S. will cease implementing its nationally determined contributions under Paris and begin the withdrawal process. He claims the agreement 'punishes the United States' while letting China and India 'do whatever they want.'

  2. U.S. formally notifies UN of withdrawal intent

    The State Department formally notifies the United Nations of U.S. intent to withdraw from the Paris Agreement — the first step in the three-year withdrawal process.

  3. U.S. files official withdrawal notification

    After the earliest possible date for filing, the U.S. formally files its withdrawal notification with the UN. Withdrawal will take effect exactly one year later.

  4. U.S. formally exits Paris Agreement

    U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement takes effect — one day after the 2020 presidential election. The U.S. is the only country to withdraw from the agreement.

  5. Biden rejoins Paris Agreement on first day in office

    President Biden signs an executive order rejoining the Paris Agreement on his first day in office. The U.S. formally rejoins 30 days later.

Sources

  1. Trump Will Withdraw U.S. From Paris Climate Agreement — The New York Times
  2. Trump announces U.S. withdrawal from the Paris climate accord — The Washington Post
  3. Trump announces U.S. will leave Paris climate pact — The Associated Press
  4. The Paris Agreement — United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change archived ✓

How this record was published

Manually curated This entry was added directly and does not carry an automated audit trail.

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