US to quit Paris climate deal: Trump tells 'confidants'
US President Donald Trump has told “confidants” that he will quit the Paris agreement on climate change, according to three sources with direct knowledge of the issue.
Axios news outlet reported on Saturday that Trump had shared his decision with the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Pruitt, among other confidants.
A number of meetings were planned with chief executives of energy companies and big corporations and others about the climate agreement before the president will announce his decision later in the week, a source told Reuters.
"I will make my final decision on the Paris Accord next week!" Trump tweeted on Saturday.
His announcement came as a summit of G7 leaders in Sicily, Italy, was wrapped up in deadlock over the issue on Saturday, with US partners voicing frustration at Trump's failure to commit to the deal aimed at stemming global warming.
The White House did not immediately respond, but Director of Strategic Communications Hope Hicks said, "I think his tweet was clear. He will make a decision this week."
Trump’s apparent reluctance to embrace the first legally-binding global climate deal annoyed G7 leaders including German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
"The entire discussion about climate was very difficult, if not to say very dissatisfying," Merkel told reporters on the sidelines of the summit. "There are no indications whether the United States will stay in the Paris Agreement or not."
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The Paris Agreement entered into force on November 4, 2016 and has been signed by 197 countries, of which 147 have now formally ratified it. Together, these countries represent more than 75 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Trump has proposed to amend the agreement, with his administration officials reportedly telling lobbyists and European diplomats that the United States will withdraw from the climate pact unless it secures concessions for the fossil fuel industry.
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