Pros And Cons Of Paris Accord

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The outcomes of the Paris Accord are rather hard to assess, as the treaty only came into effect towards the end of 2016. However, even in the short amount of time that the treaty has been in place, some outcomes can be assessed. The most positive outcome of the accord is its ratification by one-hundred and seventy-six countries, as well as twenty-one other countries that have agreed to it but have yet to ratify it. In this sense, the United Nations succeeded in achieving its goal of creating a treaty that most of the world’s states would agree to. However, arguably the most unfortunate outcome of the treaty is its failure to achieve one of its central goals: decreasing carbon emissions. Countries that agreed to the accord “promised to try to …show more content…

President Donald Trump “announced that the United States would withdraw from the Paris climate accord, weakening efforts to combat global warming and embracing isolationist voices in his White House who argued that the agreement was a pernicious threat to the economy and American sovereignty” (Shear). This is a major blow to the Paris Accord, as the United States is “the Earth’s second-largest polluter,” making up 15.53 percent of all per capita carbon dioxide emissions from fuel combustion (Shear). “Under the accord, the United States had pledged to cut its greenhouse gas emissions 26 to 28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025 and commit up to $3 billion in aid for poorer countries by 2020” (Shear). While Trump expressed his desire to “negotiate a better deal for the United States, the leaders of France, Germany and Italy issued a joint statement saying that the Paris climate accord was “irreversible” and could not be renegotiated” (Shear). Thus, the withdrawal of the US from the accord, it loses one of its most powerful members and with it, all the aid it would have provided developing countries in their efforts to “adapt to climate change and transition to clean energy” …show more content…

The president of the US believes that the agreement “imposed wildly unfair environmental standards on American businesses and workers” (Shear). This situation demonstrates the reality that states will work through international organizations as long as their personal interests are not being impeded on too much. President Donald Trump believes that the Paris Accord interferes with and places an undue burden on the American economy, hence he believes that it is not worth keeping the US enrolled in the treaty. He has placed a higher value on the US’ economic performance than he has on the contents and goals of the treaty. The country’s economic success is a crucial interest for the president, so his plan to withdraw from the treaty is understandable. This outcome points to the unfortunate truth that international organizations can only do some much to keep state involved in their actions. Once states begin to feel that their interests have come into conflict with the goals of international organizations, they often very quickly begin to pull back from the organizations. This was exactly the case for the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris Accord. Thus, it is a fair assertion that international organizations are used mostly by states when there is a lot to gain,

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