WASHINGTON: Captains of industry, corporations and business groups distanced themselves from the White House on Thursday, as many expressed frustration with President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accord.
The reactions from across the business world — including oil producers, the tech sector and finance — stood apart from Trump’s portrayal of the decision as a needed corrective to rules that could stymie commerce.
Tesla founder Elon Musk confirmed he would quit White House advisory councils on business in protest.
“Am departing presidential councils. Climate change is real. Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world,” Musk wrote on Twitter shortly after Trump’s announcement.
Disney chief Robert Iger followed suit, saying he was resigning from the panels “as a matter of principle.”
Other tech and industrial sector representatives expressed frustration with the White House’s decision and pledged to continue working to combat global warming.
“Disappointed with today’s decision on the Paris Agreement,” Jeff Immelt, CEO of General Electric, wrote on Twitter. “Industry must now lead and not depend on government.”
The Information Technology Industry Council was equally scathing.
“This is clearly disappointing, and a setback for America’s leadership in the world,” ITI President Dean Garfield said in a statement.
“Despite this, the tech industry’s determination to innovate and problem-solve for the threats posed by climate change and generate clean energy opportunities that create jobs and grow our economy remains unchanged.”
In his first ever tweet, Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein called the decision a “setback” for the environment and for US global leadership.
The statement created clashing appearances, with several former Goldman bankers having taken on important roles in the administration, including former Chief Operating Officer Gary Cohn, who was present for Trump’s announcement in the White House Rose Garden.
No wavering
Oil supermajors ExxonMobil and Chevron reiterated their support for the endangered agreement, while automaker General Motors said the White House’s decision would not lessen its resolve on the climate.
“GM will not waver from our commitment to the environment and our position on climate change has not changed,” the company said in a statement.
“International agreements aside, we remain committed to creating a better environment.”
Chevron spokeswoman Melissa Ritchie said her company “supports continuing with the Paris Agreement as it offers a first step toward a global framework.”
The accord aligns with the company’s own policy on carbon emissions, she said.
An Exxon spokesman said the 2015 accord was “critical” given the rising emissions from India and China.
“It’s the first major international accord to address climate change that includes emissions reduction pledges from both developed and developing economies,” he told AFP.
“We believe that the United States is well positioned to compete within the framework of the Paris agreement.”
The US Chamber of Commerce, a business lobby that had long criticized the prior Obama administration’s energy policies, said it had not taken a position on the Paris Agreement but favored policies that both promoted energy production and protected the environment.
“America should choose a path for an energy future that is achievable, affordable and most importantly meaningful,” the organization said in a statement.
Matt Sonnesyn, vice president of the Business Roundtable, which includes the heads of major US corporations, said the private sector was part of the solution to climate change.
“Business Roundtable CEOs have long held the view that the consequences of climate change are potentially serious and far-reaching,” Sonnesyn said.
On Wednesday, a group of major US companies including Apple, Facebook, Gap, Google and Unilever signed off on a plea for the US to keep participating in the climate deal.
“Dear President Trump, as some of the largest companies based or operating in the United States, we strongly urge you to keep the United States in the Paris Agreement,” the letter read.
Paris withdrawal sets business world at odds with Trump
Paris withdrawal sets business world at odds with Trump
Rohingya refugees hope new leaders can pave a path home
- Some 1.7 million Rohingya Muslims displaced in Myanmar's military crackdown live in squalid camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh
COX’S BAZAR, Bangladesh: Rohingya refugees living in squalid camps in Bangladesh have elected a leadership council, hoping it can improve conditions and revive efforts to secure their return home to Myanmar.
Spread over 8,000 acres in Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh, the camps are home to 1.7 million members of the stateless group, many of whom fled a 2017 military crackdown that is now subject to a genocide probe at the UN court.
In July, the refugees held their first elections since their influx began eight years ago, resulting in the formation of the United Council of Rohang (UCR).
“They are working to take us home,” said Khairul Islam, 37, who back home had a thriving timber business.
The new council has brought him a glimmer of hope amid an uncertain future.
“We can hardly breathe in these cramped camp rooms... all our family members live in a single room,” he said.
“It’s unbearably hot inside. Back in Myanmar, we didn’t even need a ceiling fan. In summer, we used to sit under tall trees,” Islam said, his eyes welling up.
More than 3,000 voters from across 33 refugee camps cast their ballots to elect an executive committee and five rotating presidents to focus on human rights, education and health.
Addressing a gathering at one of the camps, UCR president Mohammad Sayed Ullah urged refugees not to forget the violence that forced the mostly Muslim group to flee Myanmar’s Rakhine state.
“Never forget that we left our parents’ graves behind. Our women died on the way here. They were tortured and killed... and some drowned at sea,” said Sayed Ullah, dressed in a white full-sleeved shirt and lungi.
“We must prepare ourselves to return home,” he said, prompting members of the audience to nod in agreement.
A seat at the table
“UCR wants to emerge as the voice of the Rohingyas on the negotiation table,” Sayed Ullah later told AFP.
“It’s about us, yet we were nowhere as stakeholders.”
The council is not the first attempt to organize Rohingya refugees.
Several groups emerged after 2017, including the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights, once led by prominent activist Mohib Ullah.
But he was murdered in 2021.
And even before that, many organizations were shut down after a major 2019 rally, when the Rohingya said they would go home only with full rights and safety guarantees.
“Some newspapers misrepresented us, claiming we wanted to stay permanently in Bangladesh,” Sayed Ullah said.
“Many organizers were detained. The hardest blow was the assassination of Mohib Ullah.”
But trust is slowly building up again among the Rohingya crammed in the camps in Cox’s Bazar.
“Of course we will return home,” said 18-year-old Mosharraf, who fled the town of Buthidaung with his family.
“UCR will negotiate for better education. If we are better educated, we can build global consensus for our return,” he told AFP.
Security threats
Many refugees have started approaching the body with complaints against local Rohingya leaders, reflecting a slow but noticeable shift in attitudes.
On a recent sunny morning, an AFP reporter saw more than a dozen Rohingya waiting outside the UCR office with complaints.
Some said they were tortured while others reported losing small amounts of gold they had carried while fleeing their homes.
Analysts say it remains unclear whether the new council can genuinely represent the Rohingya or if it ultimately serves the interests of Bangladeshi authorities.
“The UCR ‘elections’ appear to have been closely controlled by the authorities,” said Thomas Kean, senior consultant at the International Crisis Group.
Security threats also loom large, undermining efforts to forge political dialogue.
Armed groups like the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army and Rohingya Solidarity Organization continue to operate in the camps.
A report by campaign group Fortify Rights said at least 65 Rohingyas were killed in 2024.
“Violence and killings in the Rohingya camps need to stop, and those responsible must be held to account,” the report quoted activist John Quinley as saying.
