Officials from the Trump administration reportedly used aggressive tactics to prevent the adoption of a landmark UN-backed climate agreement for global shipping, sources told the Financial Times.
According to more than ten diplomats, industry observers, and government officials present at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) talks in London last month, US negotiators threatened personal and economic consequences to intimidate smaller nations into withdrawing support for the Net Zero Framework, a plan designed to impose a carbon emissions levy on shipping.
“Delegates were approached individually and warned that they and their families could face restrictions entering the United States if they acted against American interests,” one participant told the Financial Times. Another compared the pressure to “dealing with the Mob,” describing it as “bully-boy tactics” that left the usually technocratic, consensus-driven IMO in a state of shock.
The delegation reportedly targeted African nations and small Pacific and Caribbean island states, with US officials warning that countries could face additional tariffs, higher port fees, and visa restrictions if they backed the framework. The US contingent was led by a team of eight officials, according to those present.
President Donald Trump has publicly criticized the framework as a “global green new scam tax on shipping” and called for it to be blocked in social media posts. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also indicated in a pre-meeting statement that the administration was “evaluating sanctions on officials sponsoring activist-driven climate policies that would burden American consumers.”
The framework, which had been provisionally agreed by a majority of countries in April, was expected to be formally adopted last month. However, its legal adoption has now been delayed for a year amid the US-led disruption.
Experts warn that such coercive tactics could have long-term consequences for US influence in global governance. Creon Butler, head of global economy at Chatham House, told the Financial Times that while the intimidation may work in the short term, “it increases the chances that non-US countries will conclude they cannot work with the US, making agreements independently among themselves which simply work around the US.”
Delegates from countries including Bangladesh, Japan, and Indonesia reported receiving formal diplomatic warnings — known as démarches — outlining potential retaliation if they supported the framework. “There was a combination of economic threats, which were reiterated on the floor, as well as very personal delegate-level threats, including threats to visas,” said one anonymous IMO participant.
Despite ongoing technical discussions, several delegates acknowledged that with Trump in the White House, the likelihood of the agreement coming into force remains slim. The episode has raised concerns about the US’s willingness to flout established diplomatic norms in international climate negotiations.
The Financial Times sources emphasized that the aggressive US approach marks a stark departure from standard multilateral diplomacy, signaling a potential erosion of trust in Washington’s commitment to global environmental agreements.
