'Multilateral Process Won't Stop': China, EU Commit To Push Ahead On Climate Without US

Published 22 June 2026 · europe

'Multilateral Process Won't Stop': China, EU Commit To Push Ahead On Climate Without US Published By, Last Updated: June 22, 2026, 21:34 IST China environment

'Multilateral Process Won't Stop': China, EU Commit To Push Ahead On Climate Without US Published By, Last Updated: June 22, 2026, 21:34 IST China environment minister Huang Runqiu says global climate cooperation and low carbon transition will continue despite US Paris exit, urges stronger action amid Iran war crisis Climate Cooperation Must Go On Despite US Absence, Chinese Environment Minister Huang Runqiu Tells Brussels Committee, Jointly With Canada & The EU. (Image Courtesy: Lukasz Kobus/EU) China stressed on Monday that international climate cooperation would continue regardless of either the United States or any other countries that choose to step back, as China, the European Union and Canada co-hosted a multilateral climate meeting in Brussels. “The multilateral process will not stop, or even slow down, because of the absence of individual countries," Chinese environment minister Huang Runqiu told the gathering. He described the world’s low-carbon transition as “irreversible." He also added, “We have a shared responsibility to safeguard commitments and ensure that international cooperation is not weakened by the absence of individual leaders or changing political circumstances." The meeting came months after US President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the Paris Agreement in January.

Washington is the world’s second-largest carbon emitter. No other country has followed the US out of the treaty. The Brussels Committee The Brussels meeting was co-hosted despite mounting tensions between the EU and China over trade imbalances and Beijing’s dominance of global clean technology supply chains, including solar panels. Huang also linked the ongoing war in Iran to the case for accelerating the energy transition. “The energy crisis triggered by the war in Iran has made all parties further recognise that green and low-carbon development, guided by the response to climate change, helps coordinate energy transition and energy security," he said. He warned that global instability demanded stronger, not weaker, resolve on climate policy. “The more turbulent and crisis-ridden the world becomes, the more it tests countries’ strategic resolve and policy determination in advancing climate action," Huang said. Early data from some countries points to a shift in energy behaviour since the war began. Pakistan has reported a jump in electric vehicle sales since the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran started. However, other nations have moved in the opposite direction, increasing coal and oil-based power generation as they struggle to replace gas supplies disrupted from West Asia.