Dismantling the Paris Order: Trump 2.0’s Assault on Global Climate Governance and China’s Strategic Response
Received: 2025-10-09Accepted: 2026-06-11
J. Int. Eco. Glo. Gov., 2026, 3(2), 16-26; https://doi.org/10.58244/jiegg.250850
Abstract: The second Trump presidency, inaugurated in January 2025, precipitated a paradigmatic rupture in global environmental governance that has been profoundly amplified by subsequent international developments through mid-2026. Far exceeding a domestic policy reversal, the administration’s energy doctrine systematically dismantles the institutional architecture of the Paris [...] Read More.
Keywords: Trump 2.0; Paris Agreement; Climate governance; Strategic autonomy; Multilateralism; China; COP30
Keywords: Trump 2.0; Paris Agreement; Climate governance; Strategic autonomy; Multilateralism; China; COP30
Abstract
Abstract
The second Trump presidency, inaugurated in January 2025, precipitated a paradigmatic rupture in global environmental governance that has been profoundly amplified by subsequent international developments through mid-2026. Far exceeding a domestic policy reversal, the administration’s energy doctrine systematically dismantles the institutional architecture of the Paris Agreement, weaponizes fossil fuel interdependence, and erects a green iron curtain against China’s clean energy industries. This article conceptualizes these actions as a deliberate strategy of regime decay, designed to entrench U.S. energy hegemony while externalizing the costs of the climate crisis. Drawing on regime theory, hegemonic stability theory, and polycentric governance perspectives, the analysis unpacks the destructive logics of institutional paralysis, energy cartelization, and supply chain decoupling, and then traces their manifestations in critical events up to June 2026—including the COP30 impasse, an expanded technology blacklist, and a transatlantic rift over carbon border measures. The article reevaluates China’s strategic environment, identifying both intensified structural pressures and a historic leadership vacuum, and advances a tripartite response framework—strengthening strategic autonomy, cultivating inclusive multilateral networks, and executing precisely calibrated countermeasures—to position China as a stabilizing architect of a more equitable and resilient climate order.
Keywords: Trump 2.0; Paris Agreement; Climate governance; Strategic autonomy; Multilateralism; China; COP30
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References
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