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US unlikely to withdraw from Paris climate agreement — Russian presidential envoy

MOSCOW, March 28. /TASS/. The United States is unlikely to pull out of the Paris Agreement as the new administration seeks to cooperate on climate issues, Russian presidential adviser and special envoy for climate change Alexander Bedritsky told TASS ahead of the International Arctic Forum.

"I think the US policy will be pragmatic and it won’t withdraw from the Paris Agreement," Bedritsky said. "Yes, President Donald Trump said that the US should pull out of the Paris Agreement, but he said this at the height of election campaign," he said.

Bedritsky has not ruled out that under the new president, Washington may revise the earlier declared commitments on achieving the Paris accord’s goal of "keeping a global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels."

"At the current stage, the administration may say that Obama was wrong and change its commitments, while promising to do more in the future. This approach is possible, but it seems to me that they will cooperate," Bedritsky said. He explained that until a country ratifies the agreement, its declared contribution may be revised.

The Arctic - Territory of Dialogue Fourth International Forum will be held in Arkhangelsk, a city in the north of European Russia, on March 29-30. It is expected to bring together about 1,500 people from Russia and other countries. The TASS news agency is the forum’s general media partner.

The forum is one of key platforms for discussing problems and prospects of the Arctic region. Its goal is to unite efforts of the international community for the efficient development of the Arctic. The participants of the forum, held since 2010, discuss improving the quality of life in the Arctic territories, developing transport system and environmental issues.