Donald Trump is poised to withdraw the US from a major climate change deal designed to cut global carbon emissions, a White House official has said.
Mr Trump tweeted this afternoon, "I will be announcing my decision announcing my decision on the Paris Accord over the next few days", adding: "MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"
I will be announcing my decision on the Paris Accord over the next few days. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2017
The US president refused to endorse the landmark accord at the weekend and left the G7 summit in Sicily with a parting shot tweet saying he had not made up his mind on whether to back it.
If the US goes its own way, documents seen by The Financial Times suggest that the EU will create a new alliance to tackle the issue of climate change.
They plan to accelerate efforts to leave fossil fuels behind and to bring the "historic achievement" of the Paris climate accord to life.
This will include a commitment from the EU to give China €10m to support the development of its emissions trading system.
"The increasing impacts of climate change require a decisive response ... Tackling climate change and reforming our energy systems are significant drivers of job creation, investment opportunities and economic growth," says the paper, which is due to be published on Friday, according to the financial publication.
China, India, Canada and the EU have said they will stick by the Paris deal, even if the US pulls out.
In March, Donald Trump rolled back many of Barrack Obama's climate reforms with a series of executive orders undermining America's commitment to tackling global warming.
They enabled regulators to rewrite key rules curbing US carbon emissions, lift a temporary ban on federal coal leasing and scrap a requirement for federal officials to consider the impact of climate change when making decisions.
Additional reporting by IRN
