Trump defends Paris Accord withdrawal, claims it 'was made to kill US economy'

Outgoing US President Donald Trump has defended his decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement, saying it was "designed to kill American economy". Trump's comments, at the recently concluded G20 Summit, came as President-elect Joe Biden vowed to rejoin the agreement as soon as he takes over. Trump, who appeared at the summit via a video link, said the agreement was never meant to reduce pollution but was made to kill the American economy and jobs. 

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Trump in his address further said that the carbon emission in the United States has reduced under his rule, claiming  7 percent cleaner air than since he took office. The US President said that by deciding to withdraw from the Paris accord he saved trillions of dollars in American taxpayers' money that would have otherwise gone to "environmental offenders", referring to countries which according to him are continuing to pollute the environment. 

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Biden's step towards rejoining Paris Accord

Biden has already nominated former US Secretary of State John Kerry as Special Presidential Envoy for Climate. Kerry signed the historic Paris Climate Agreement on behalf of the United States in 2015 and is expected to oversee Washington's re-entry into the international pact, from which the US formally withdrew a day after the 2020 presidential election. The Trump administration had given a one-year notice to withdraw from the accord on November 4, 2019. 

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Meanwhile, Donald Trump has refused to concede defeat to Biden as he keeps making "disputed" claims on Twitter regarding the unfound US election fraud. The Trump campaign has filed lawsuits in several states challenging the results, while Republican canvassers have on multiple occasions tried to block the certification of ballots. Trump alleges that poll officials "illegally" counted ballots that arrived after 8 p.m on the final voting day. 

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(Image Credit: AP)