Hungary’s president: US withdrawal from Paris climate accord ‘morally unacceptable’

Hungarian President János Áder on Tuesday called the recent US decision to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement “morally unacceptable”.

Ever since the industrial revolution, the United States has carried the greatest historical responsibility for the increase in CO2 emissions, Áder said in during a visit to a secondary school in Székesfehérvár, in western Hungary.

The recent US decision is “disrespectful and irresponsible towards future generations” since it will seriously impact not only future generations in the United States but also people living in other parts of the world, the president said.

“The Paris accord must be implemented even without the United States, because there is no other alternative; there is no other planet we can move to,” Áder said.

The president added, at the same time, that “it is not the end of the world”, as all major signatories of the agreement have reaffirmed their commitment to it since last Thursday.

In addition, 14 US states have announced that they will meet the targets of the agreement and a further 10 intend to join them, Áder noted.

Áder also noted that originally Syria and Nicaragua were the only countries not to sign the agreement and that Hungary was the first European Union member state to ratify it.

In his address he also talked about the world’s drinking water supply, population growth and its impact on water and food security.

Photo: MTI/EPA/Shawn Thew

Source: MTI