Rabia Iclal Turan
October 16, 2025•Update: October 16, 2025
WASHINGTON
The US will oppose a UN proposal to impose what it calls the world’s "first global carbon tax," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday, warning that the measure would raise prices in key areas worldwide.
"This week, the UN is attempting to pass the first global carbon tax, which will increase energy, food, and fuel costs across the world. We will not allow the UN to tax American citizens and companies," Rubio said on US media company X.
He added that under President Donald Trump’s leadership, the US "will be a hard NO," urging other countries to "stand alongside the US in defense of our citizens and sovereignty."
The remarks come ahead of next week’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) vote on adopting a Net-Zero Framework (NZF) — a policy that would impose a global levy on shipping emissions to reduce carbon output.
In an earlier joint statement with Energy Secretary Doug Wright and Transportation Secretary John Duffy, Rubio said the administration "unequivocally rejects this proposal before the IMO and will not tolerate any action that increases costs for our citizens, energy providers, shipping companies and their customers."
The carbon tax is meant to help tackle the problem of excess carbon fueling global warming, which threatens to make human life on Earth less and less sustainable.
Trump has long denied the existence of global warming, calling the idea a “Chinese hoax.”
Before Trump, previous Republican administrations advocated such plans as "cap and trade" to reduce carbon emissions. Trump, on the contrary, advocates “drill baby drill,” meaning the use of more fossil fuels, and has tried to halt renewable energy projects.
