Will President Donald Trump pull the USA out of the Paris Climate change agreement?

The Paris Climate Change Agreement sets out a global action plan to put the world on track to avoid dangerous climate change by limiting global warming to well below 2°C. The Agreement came into force on November the 4th prior to the US Presidential election. Republican (GOP) President elect Donald Trump has persistently emphasised his willingness to withdrawal the US from the Agreement. This is in line with GOP platform. In July 2016, the GOP rejected the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Climate Change Agreement. During the campaign Trump labelled climate change as a hoax invented by the Chinese to make the US less competitive.

Article 28 of the Paris Agreement stimulates mechanism to withdraw from the agreement; (a) At any time after three years from the date on which this Agreement has entered into force for a Party, that Party may withdraw from the Agreement by giving written notification to the Depositary, (b) Any such withdrawal shall take effect upon expiry of one year from the date of receipt by the Depositary and (c) Any Party that withdraws from the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change shall be considered as also having withdrawn from the Paris Agreement. Whilst there is this formal withdrawal process, Trump can refuse to adhere to President Obama’s pledge to cut emissions to 26 percent below 2005 levels by 2025, as well as decline to contribute to global climate funds.