The President-elect, who has called climate change a hoax, is hostile to global efforts to slow planetary warming, shifting the leadership burden to Europe and China.

This month's U.N. climate summit - COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan - has been dubbed the "climate finance COP" for its central goal: to agree on how much money should go each year to helping developing countries cope with climate-related costs.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will not attend the COP29 climate summit because of political developments in Brussels, a Commission spokesperson told Reuters on Tuesday. There, EU lawmakers are vetting the members of her new European Commission,