Un chief tells trump “we are waiting for you” as nearly 200 countries near historic fossil fuel agreement at cop30

At the COP30 climate summit in Belém, Brazil, UN Secretary-General António Guterres delivered a pointed message to President Donald Trump and the United States as nearly 200 nations moved toward finalizing a groundbreaking global plan to phase out fossil fuels. Speaking on the second-to-last day of negotiations, Guterres’s simple yet powerful words—”We are waiting for you”—underscored the conspicuous absence of official U.S. federal representation at the critical talks.

Despite the lack of formal U.S. government participation, American influence continues to permeate the global climate negotiations in unexpected ways. From behind-the-scenes fossil fuel industry lobbying to robust climate action initiatives led by individual U.S. states, the country’s impact on international climate policy remains significant even without an official federal presence.

The timing of Guterres’s remarks highlights the delicate diplomatic balance at COP30, where world leaders are working to maintain momentum on climate action while navigating the political reality of changing U.S. leadership. As countries inch closer to what could be a historic agreement on transitioning away from fossil fuels, the absence of the world’s second-largest carbon emitter creates both challenges and opportunities for the international climate movement.

This dynamic reflects the complex web of American climate influence, spanning from state governments and cities continuing their own climate commitments to ongoing intelligence and monitoring efforts that contribute to global environmental data. The question remains whether formal U.S. participation will eventually rejoin these multilayered American contributions to international climate efforts.