Advertisement

G20: Trump defends withdrawal from Paris accord

It was a move that took effect on Nov. 4, a day after the presidential election won by Democrat Joe Biden, who has said he will rejoin the agreement as soon as he takes office.

Trump said, without providing evidence, that the air in the United States was 7% cleaner than when he took office, and that U.S. renewable energy capacity had increased by more than 30% even as the United States became the top U.S. and natural gas producer in the world.

"Every day we're proving that we can protect our workers, create new jobs, and safeguard the environment without imposing crippling mandates and one-sided international agreements on our citizens," he said.

Trump's comments were streamed to the virtual gathering on Sunday (November 22).