China, in a rare public rebuke, slammed Donald Trump’s plan to pull out of the Paris climate change deal reached last year.
The Chinese reaction comes three days before the United Nations plans to put the climate deal into effect on Friday, just ahead of the U.S. elections on Nov. 8.
Xie Zhenhua, the country’s top climate envoy, made the comments slamming Trump’s exit plan Tuesday in response to a reporter’s question at a news conference in Beijing.
“I believe a wise political leader should take policy stances that conform with global trends,” Xie said, according to Reuters.
Xie said if a President Trump were to “resist this trend, I don’t think they’ll win the support of their people, and their country’s economic and social progress will also be affected.”
The comments marked a rare response to Trump, which may have been the first by a senior Chinese official.
Trump surrogate Rep. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., said last week that Trump likely would require the Senate to ratify the Paris climate deal, which almost certainly would fail in the Senate.
Trump has continually bashed China over its trade and currency manipulation practices.
Democratic rival Hillary Clinton has criticized Trump for calling climate change a “hoax” created by the Chinese based on a tweet the Republican nominee made several years ago. Many scientists blame greenhouse gases emitted from burning fossil fuels for driving man-made climate change.
During the presidential debates, Trump adamantly denied he made the statement.
