President Trump Ignores Prime Minister Rabuka's Plea

FIJI NEWS

By: Lusia Pio

1/30/20251 min read

US President Donald Trump has not reconsidered his decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement, seemingly ignoring pleas from Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka, who has urged the US to remain committed to global climate efforts.

The Prime Minister of Fiji urged President Trump to reconsider pulling out from the accord as it would negatively impact Fiji and other island countries in the Pacific.

President Trump has not acknowledged or responded to the plea at the time of publishing.

The Paris Climate Agreement, established in 2015, aims to combat climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and includes provisions for financial and technical support to help developing countries adapt.

Trump's stance on climate change, often labeling it a "hoax," led to his first withdrawal from the agreement in 2017.

He has now reinstated this decision, citing the accord as unfair to the United States.

The United States was a major contributor to the Paris Climate Agreement, pledging up to $3 billion to the Green Climate Fund (GCF), which supports developing nations like Fiji in adapting to climate change.

With the US withdrawal, Fiji and other vulnerable nations will lose access to crucial funding for climate resilience projects, making it harder to combat rising sea levels and extreme weather events.

Prime Minister Rabuka earlier congratulated Trump on his victory and eyed better bilateral relations between Fiji and the US.