News / Human Rights

US to care about environment, Haley says, calling Paris a accord just ‘a club’

Saturday, 03 June 2017 8:15 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 04 June 2017 2:10 AM ]

US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley speaks to the staff at the US embassy in Ankara on May 23, 2017.

The United States’ withdrawal from the Paris accord does not mean Washington disregards environment, suggests the US ambassador to the UN, asserting that President Donald Trump believes that the climate is changing due to “pollutants.”

Nikki Haley made the comments in an interview with CNN, aired on Saturday, days after Trump drew ire over a decision to pull out of the agreement.

"President Trump believes the climate is changing and he believes pollutants are part of the equation," said the American envoy to the United Nations.

The 45-year-old maintained that Trump’s decision does not necessarily run counter to the US will protection of the environment.

"Just because the U.S. got out of a club doesn't mean we aren't going to care about the environment," Haley said.

On Friday, both White House press secretary Sean Spicer and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) chief Scott Pruitt refused to say whether the president believes in climate change, which is a scientific fact.

“All the discussions we had through the last several weeks had been focused on one singular issue: Is Paris good or not for this country?” Pruitt said.

Spicer also stated that he has “not had an opportunity to have that discussion."

Like many other issues, Trump’s stance on climate change has been obscure, once calling it a “Chinese hoax,” another time acknowledging that there is “some connectivity” between it and human activity.

Traditionally, the GOP maintains that the climate is not changing and even if it does it has nothing to do with human activities and there is nothing we can do about it. Scientists, however, disagree.

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