Was it the convincing talk of French President Emmanuel Macron or the awkward handshake with French First Lady Brigitte Macron that just made U.S. President Donald trump consider changing his mind about the Paris climate agreement? The Telegraph reported that Trump is now open to possibly reversing his previous decision to pull the U.S. out of the deal signed in 2015.
After Trump attended the Bastille Day celebrations on Friday, the American president was asked if he is willing to review his position on climate.
Trump surprised visitors at the Elysee Palace when the real estate billionaire replied, “Something could happen with respect to the Paris accords.”
Climate change is a national security threat
On the same day, the U.S. Congress passed a defense policy bill that declared climate change a national security threat. The bill, which would authorize $696 billion in defense spending for the 2018 fiscal year, was approved on a vote of 344-81. Besides the declaration of climate change as a national security threat, the defense policy bill also demanded a rigorous oversight of the cyber operations of the Department of Defense, and rejected the plan of the Trump administration to shutter military bases.
The bill has a section that requires the Defense Department to deliver a report to Congress that will provide details on the impact of weather change on the armed forces.
The report should have a list of the 10 U.S. military bases most vulnerable to increased flooding, wildfires, rising oceans, and other impacts of climate change.
Surprise section on weather change
Given the known stand of Trump on weather change, the inclusion of the section in the defense policy bill is a surprise. Americans, however, may be surprised by the openness of Trump as he promised Macron and other leaders climate change “will be talked about over the coming period of time.” It is still a 50-50 chance because the change of policy on the Paris climate deal “will be wonderful” if it happens, but it will still be OK too if the change does not happen.
Macron reiterated France’s commitment to the Paris climate change agreement but said he respected that Trump had to honor his campaign promise. Nevertheless, Macron admitted that even if he expects no sudden and unexpected changes in Washington’s climate change policy, the French president hoped he was able to persuade Trump to change his view.
