This post was originally published on The Economic Times
High-level US representatives are staying away from the UN climate negotiations in Brazil, even as President Donald Trump seeks to influence energy policy globally.
The plan to forgo senior representation at the COP30 climate summit, described by a White House official, comes as other world leaders — including Chinese President Xi Jinping — are also set to skip summit events beginning next week in Belém, Brazil. Although 143 nations will have delegations at the UN negotiations, just 57 heads of state and government are now slated to attend official summit events, the COP30 presidency said in Brasília on Friday.
“The US is not sending any high-level representatives to COP30,” the White House official said. “The president is directly engaging with leaders around the world on energy issues, which you can see from the historic trade deals and peace deals that all have significant focus on energy partnerships.”
The decision is consistent with Trump’s focus on using American oil, gas and coal to achieve “energy dominance” — as well as his scorn for efforts to combat climate change, which he’s derided
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