EU fast-tracks Paris climate deal to brink of entering into force

European Union states agreed today on a fast-track, joint ratification of the Paris accord to combat climate change, pushing the landmark global pact to the brink of entering into force.
The 2015 Paris deal will guide a radical shift of the world economy away from fossil fuels. Friday's agreement by environment ministers from all EU 28 member states marks a rare political breakthrough for the bloc at a time of uncertainty over Britain's departure and discord over the migration crisis.
"All member states greenlight early EU ratification of Paris Agreement: What some believed impossible is now real," tweeted European Council President Donald Tusk, whose home country Poland had been the main state resisting such a swift accord.
European Climate Commissioner Miguel Arias Canete hailed a "historic" decision and said the deal answered criticisms that the EU had lost leadership on climate change. "In difficult times, we get our act together," he said.
December's Paris Agreement, by almost 200 nations, aims to slash greenhouse gas emissions by shifting away from fossil fuels in order to limit global warming to "well below" two degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) compared to pre-industrial...

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