Trump Withdraws the US from Major UN Climate Agreement, Alarming Global Bodies
A White House memorandum identified 66 international organizations and treaties as being “contrary to US interests.”
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump has announced the United States’ withdrawal from a cornerstone international climate treaty, marking a broader retreat from multilateral global cooperation, according to a White House statement released Wednesday. A memorandum listed 66 international organizations and treaties—around half of them linked to the United Nations—as being “contrary to the interests of the United States.” Among the most significant is the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the umbrella treaty that forms the basis of all major global climate agreements.
Trump, whose domestic agenda strongly favors fossil fuel development, has repeatedly dismissed the scientific consensus on human-driven climate change, often labeling it a “hoax.” The UNFCCC was adopted at the Rio Earth Summit in June 1992 and ratified later that year by the US Senate during the presidency of George H.W. Bush. While the US Constitution outlines the process for entering treaties with Senate approval, it does not clearly define how a president may withdraw from them—an ambiguity that could lead to legal challenges.
Since returning to office, Trump has again withdrawn the US from the Paris Climate Agreement, repeating a move he made during his first term from 2017 to 2021, which was later reversed by Democratic President Joe Biden. Leaving the underlying UNFCCC treaty could further complicate any future attempt by the US to rejoin global climate accords. Jean Su, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, told AFP that withdrawing from the UNFCCC is far more consequential than exiting the Paris Agreement. She argued that it is unlawful for a president to unilaterally withdraw from a treaty approved by a two-thirds Senate majority, adding that legal avenues are being explored. Li Shuo of the Asia Society Policy Institute described the decision as a serious setback to global climate action, warning that it undermines hard-earned international consensus.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, a vocal critic of Trump and a potential presidential contender, condemned the move, saying it diminishes America’s global leadership and weakens its position in the future economy, creating opportunities for rivals such as China. The memorandum also instructs the US to exit the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), along with other climate-related bodies including the International Renewable Energy Agency, UN Oceans, and UN Water.
As during his first term, Trump has also withdrawn the US from the Paris Agreement and UNESCO, which the country had rejoined under Biden. He has additionally pulled the US out of the World Health Organization and significantly reduced foreign aid, leading to funding cuts for several UN agencies such as the High Commissioner for Refugees and the World Food Programme. Other organizations named in the memo include the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), UN Women, and the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the targeted organizations were driven by “progressive ideology” and sought to limit American sovereignty, citing initiatives related to diversity, gender equity, and climate policy as part of a broader globalist agenda. Speaking before the UN General Assembly in September, Trump sharply criticized the United Nations, questioning its purpose in a wide-ranging speech that also highlighted grievances over conditions at the UN’s New York headquarters.