Re:US quits Paris climate pact
by Clubber on Thursday June 01, 2017 @07:24PM
(#14465899)
So if say China were to commit to something with more teeth, the US would in essence be complying since we buy much of our good from there. Would that be a fair statement?
[ Parent
| on HN ]
I'd say that's a perpendicular issue to what I'm talking about. It's more about China, Russia, etc. having credibility when making agreements, which makes them better partners when making international deals. It's like, do you want to date a girl (or boy) who agrees to be monogamous one week but regularly changes her mind when the opportunity arises? Or someone who's willing to follow through with her commitments?
That said, one aspect that sort of touches on that is now the USA has no say in the agreement as it evolves. If China and the EU keep on building on their strengths in green tech, they could very easily ratchet up the agreement to be much more favorable to their economies, plausibly including heavy fees on all exports from noncompliant countries. (That's one major reason fossil fuel interests mostly wanted us to stay in it.)