World leaders renew vow to fight climate change after Trump pulls US out of Paris agreement

World leaders pledged Thursday to keep up the fight against global warming as US President Donald Trump announced he was pulling out of the Paris climate accord.

The European Union’s top climate change official said Trump’s decision to leave the Paris accord made it “a sad day for the global community.”

The EU climate action commissioner, Miguel Arias Canete, said in a statement that the bloc “deeply regrets the unilateral decision by the Trump administration” but vowed “the world can continue to count on Europe for global leadership.”

Canete also predicted that the EU would seek new alliances from the world’s largest economies to the most vulnerable island states, as well as US businesses and individuals supportive of the accord.

Italian Premier Paolo Gentiloni said on Twitter that Italy will keep its commitments for reducing emissions, renewable energy and sustainable development.

Norway’s largest pension fund with 53 billion euro (US$59.5 billion) in assets under its management said it would also continue to invest in renewable energy despite the American president’s decision, saying in a statement that “Donald Trump is jumping off a train that has already left the station.”