WASHINGTON―Facing 195 other countries who have chosen a different path, the task of US negotiators at the coming climate talks in Bonn is unenviable. Donald Trump has vowed to exit the Paris Climate accord, just not yet, leaving US policy in limbo for the next three years until Washington can officially leave. So, it falls to Thomas Shannon―a respected career diplomat―to this week lead a delegation into talks aimed at implementing an agreement the US is set to abandon. The Trump administration says it will still turn up, hoping to protect America’s interests and put “America first.”Rather ambitiously, Washington wants to handcuff its biggest geopolitical rivals to their commitments. Ben Rhodes, a former aide to president Barack Obama, believes Washington has abandoned any leverage it once had.

Source: The Standard October 30, 2017 06:22 UTC