Von der Leyen: Paris climate deal still ‘best hope for all humanity’

By Karl Mathiesen | 01/22/2025 06:06 AM EST

The EU chief’s remarks came just hours after Donald Trump yanked the U.S. from the landmark climate accord.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speaks during the third session of the G20 leaders meeting in Rio de Janeiro.

Ursula von der Leyen faces growing calls from within her own center-right party to water down the EU’s climate change legislation. Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen responded indirectly Tuesday to Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, declaring the climate accord a lifeline for the world.

“The Paris Agreement continues to be the best hope for all humanity. So Europe will stay the course, and keep working with all nations that want to protect nature and stop global warming,” the European Union’s top executive said in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

The remarks came hours after Trump signed an executive order Monday that commanded the United States’ withdrawal from the 2015 Paris deal and all other deals and agreements signed under the auspices of the United Nations climate convention. The order also put an immediate end to American climate finance support for developing countries.

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It’s the second time Trump has pulled the U.S. from the deal, which commits nearly every nation to lower planet-warming emissions. Von der Leyen said devastating recent disasters in the U.S., including hurricanes and fires, were evidence that “all continents will have to speed up the transition toward net zero.”

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