President Donald Trump’s controversial decision to pull out from the Paris Climate Agreement has left David Rank, acting US ambassador to China, red-faced on foreign shores. Following the decision, Rank submitted his resignation in Beijing. He was with the Foreign Service Department since 1990 and took up the position of the deputy chief of mission at the US embassy in Beijing, China, in January 2016.
In his last speech to employees of the embassy, the ambassador explained that his resignation was a result of his inability carry out a task, which was assigned to him.
He shared that he was simply unable to carry out the task with a good conscience. His former colleagues stated that the former federal agent was a “thoughtful” and “non-political" person who was best suited to represent the interest of the U.S. government abroad.
Former Ambassador Dan Feldman stated that the U.S. government is losing incredibly talented officers, especially at a time when the nation needs them the most.However a State Department spokesperson stated to NBC News that Ranks was “retiring,” and not resigning from his position. The spokesperson also added that the decision to “retire” was apparently a personal one. His years of relentless service to the State Department was appreciated by the government.
David Ranks and his years in the foreign service
David Ranks in his 27-year-long career was a respected foreign service officer who served in countries such as Mauritius, Greece, Taiwan, Afghanistan, and Shanghai. He is fluent in several languages such as French, Mandarin Chinese, Greek, and Dari, which is an Afghan-Persian language.
President Trump withdraws from Paris Climate deal
President Trump on Thursday, June 1, announced his decision to withdraw from the Paris climate deal, stating that his decision was a part of his “America First” campaign, which he emphasized on during his 2016 election campaign. His decision was widely criticized by corporate and technological companies such as Facebook, Tesla, General Electric, Apple, and several other companies.
Elon Musk even stated that he would be resigning from two of his seats on White House’s advisory boards. The Paris Climate treaty was negotiated in 2015 and came into effect from November 2016. The treaty was signed by nearly 200 countries who vowed to do their best to prevent the Earth’s temperature from rising more than 3.6 degrees Farenheit. President Trump claims that the treaty was not properly negotiated and put the country at an economic inconvenience.
