On Saturday, President Barack Obama said, “We are here together because we believe that for all the challenges that we face, the growing threat of climate change could define the contours of this century more dramatically than any other challenge”.
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Now that the USA and China, which are responsible for nearly 40% of global emissions, have ratified the agreement and over 55 countries have already joined or publicly committed to work toward joining it this year, the White House says the Paris Agreement could enter into force by as early as the end of this year. The two countries signed documents committing them to the climate change agreement, with these documents then being turned over to the United Nations.
On Saturday, President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping formally signed the Paris Agreement, a piece of United Nations legislation aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, finally making steps toward environmental responsibility on a global scale. The Independent cited Obama saying that their decision was “the moment we finally chose to save our planet”. In order for the Paris Agreement to actually take effect and enter into legal force, at least 55 countries representing at least 55 percent of global emissions need to formally join the Paris Agreement.
On Sunday the UAE became the first Arabian Gulf country to accept the agreement, which aims to combat global warming.
Joining the Paris agreement is President Obama’s latest step toward cementing his climate legacy and ensuring that the US remains a global leader on the issue.
Last week, Obama submitted an instrument to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, for deposit with the UN, which he claims signifies official “acceptance” of the Paris Agreement by the United States. At least 55 parties representing at least 55 per cent of global green house emissions are required to ratify the agreement for it to enter into force.
In December 2015, you showed vital leadership by adopting the ground-breaking Paris Agreement.
President Obama has just committed his most flagrant violation of the U.S. Constitution to date.
Obama traced the history of the U.S. -China climate agreement under the shroud of the Labor Day weekend.
As mayors, we are already dealing with the consequences of climate change on our cities, from floods to heat waves, and from water shortages to air pollution. “So the final communique plans to welcome countries that plan to ratify by 2016, but others have said they would try to proceed as soon as possible”, he said.
As for the Paris deal, HSBC says it expects the treaty to be ratified by the end of this year.
The announcement by China and the United States, the two largest-emitting countries, has increased pressure on the Member States of the European Union, together the third largest emitter of greenhouse gases, to also ratify the Agreement quickly.
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Xu Nan, a policy analyst at the Climate and Energy Finance Research Center at the Central University of Finance and Economics, said any efforts by G20 members to bring about sooner ratification of the Paris Agreement, would send a positive signal to investors.
