“Close the ranks of the remaining G20 members”

After the US decision to leave the Paris Agreement, the German government will work on uniting all remaining G20 members in climate protection efforts in the run-up to the summit in July, said government spokesperson Steffen Seibert at a press conference in Berlin. “We will probably not have complete unanimity on this topic. Our task will be to close the ranks of the remaining G20 members and rally them behind the Paris Agreement,” said Seibert. The German government will work towards this goal in the preparatory meetings for the summit. At the summit, the G20 action plan on climate and energy - initiated by the German presidency - will also be debated, according to Seibert. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed in a telephone call after the US decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement that the two countries will propose additional initiatives for climate protection, said Seibert.

For background, read the CLEW articles German reactions to US decision to withdraw from Paris Agreement and Germany, China urge US to remain in climate agreement.