TAORMINA, Italy —President Donald Trump declined to endorse the Paris climate accords on Saturday, saying he would decide in the coming days whether the United States would pull out of the 195-nation agreement.
Trump's lack of a decision after three days of contentious private debate and intense lobbying by other leaders came even as the six other G-7 nations reaffirmed their commitment to cutting planet-warming emissions in a joint statement issued Saturday afternoon.
The lobbying essentially ended in a stalemate, with Trump remaining opaque about his intentions regarding the 2015 pact as he prepared to return home after a nine-day overseas trip. The impasse underscored the continuing division between the United States and its allies about the global environmental pact.
The joint communiqué made clear that all the G-7 nations except the United States remained determined to carry out the Paris agreement. It said: "Expressing understanding for this process, the heads of state and of government of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom, and the presidents of the European Council and of the European Commission reaffirm their strong commitment to swiftly implement the Paris Agreement."
In a message on Twitter posted before the joint statement was officially released, Trump said: "I will make my final decision on the Paris Accord next week!"
The reaction was swift and critical. Alden Meyer, director of strategy and policy at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said: "President Trump's continued waffling on whether to stay in or withdraw from the Paris Agreement made it impossible to reach consensus at the Taormina summit on the need for ambitious climate action. But he stands in stark isolation."
The leaders of Germany and France expressed disappointment, according to the Associated Press. "The whole discussion about climate was very difficult not to say unsatisfactory," said German Chancellor Angela Merkel. "There's a situation where it's six, if you count the European Union, seven, against one," she said.
President Emmanuel Macron of France said he had told Trump that it was "indispensable for the reputation of the United States and for the Americans themselves that the Americans remain committed" to the climate agreement.
The G-7 statement provides the United States more time to resolve internal White House debates about whether to pull out of the pact. It says the United States is "in the process of reviewing its policies on climate change and on the Paris Agreement and thus is not in a position to join the consensus on these topics."
Gary D. Cohn, director of the National Economic Council, insisted that the other countries understood Trump's refusal to make a decision on the accord, even if they did not support it.
"They understand the president's only been in office for a certain period of time, and they respect that," Cohn said. "They understand where we are; we understand where they are."
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Explore all your optionsHe added: "We're all allies. We're all trying to get to the right place and be respectful of each other."