France withdrawal from Fossil fuel treaty.

France has become the latest country to announce plans to withdraw from an investment treaty in a sign of growing rebellion in the EU over an accord that activists say deters stricter action to address climate change. President Emmanuel Macron said yesterday France would withdraw from the Energy Charter Treaty, an agreement crafted after the cold war that protects energy investments, including fossil fuel projects, by foreign companies or individuals. «To that end, I want to clearly announce that France has decided to withdraw from the treaty, which was an important step demanded by many and that we have been working towards». Remaining in the treaty was incompatible with «cutting carbon emissions through 2030 as called for in the Paris accords», said an independent French climate advisory body recommended the withdrawal.

Moves by the EU and UK to modernise the treaty have met opposition from lawmakers in many European states, who argue the revised treaty does not go far enough in phasing out protections for fossil fuels. France’s decision followed recent announcements by the Netherlands, Spain and Poland of plans to withdraw from the treaty.

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