The one-year postponement of a decision within the International Maritime Organization (IMO) on the adoption of a global plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships is a “huge victory” for Donald Trump, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared Friday.
“Thanks to his leadership, the United States prevented a massive increase in taxes imposed by the UN on American consumers, which would have been used to finance progressive climate projects,” he wrote on the X network.
IMO member countries postponed for one year on Friday their decision on the adoption of this plan, which the United States was categorically opposed.
This postponement, initially proposed by Saudi Arabia, follows a chaotic week of negotiations in London during which Washington sought at all costs to derail the bill, even threatening sanctions against supportive countries.
Donald Trump called on his Truth Social network on Thursday to vote against the plan: “The United States will NOT tolerate or comply with this global green shipping tax scam,” he wrote, adding: “We will not tolerate price increases for American consumers or the creation of a green bureaucracy to spend YOUR money on their green dreams.”
The United States threatened delegations in favor of the plan with visa restrictions for their crew members, trade penalties, or additional port fees.
“Too many states have chosen political compromise…”
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This week, European Union countries, Brazil, and China reiterated their support for the adoption of this “net-zero framework” (also known as NZF). The Pacific Island states, which had abstained in April, deeming the measure insufficient, finally indicated their support. But alongside the United States, Saudi Arabia, Russia, and oil-producing countries united against the project.
The official adoption of this text, which had already been approved in principle in April, would have enabled this extremely polluting sector to take a historic climate turn by requiring ships to gradually reduce their emissions starting in 2028, until complete decarbonization around 2050. The text provided for taxing ships above a certain greenhouse gas emission threshold to force them to decarbonize. The money raised, approximately $15 billion, was to be distributed to the least polluting ships and to countries vulnerable to climate change.
Emma Fenton of the British NGO Opportunity Green expressed her disappointment: “This result highlights the lack of courage shown by member states. Faced with pressure from the United States and others… Too many states have chosen political compromise at the expense of climate justice. This is a defeat for multilateralism.”
IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez asked delegates not to applaud at the end of the meeting. “There is nothing to celebrate… but let’s work towards an agreement within a year,” he concluded.
“This is a missed opportunity for member states to put the shipping sector on a clear and credible path to net-zero emissions,” UN Secretary-General Stéphane Dujarric’s spokesperson told the press. “Decarbonizing this sector is critical.”
