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WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Thursday he was withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement, striking a major blow to worldwide efforts to combat climate change and distancing the country from many allies abroad. He said the U.S. would try to negotiate re-entry on better terms.

“As of today, the United States will cease all implementation of the nonbinding Paris accord,” Trump said during a White House Rose Garden announcement. Suggesting renegotiating re-entry was not a major priority, he said, “If we can, great. If we can’t, that’s fine.”

By abandoning the world’s chief effort to slow the tide of planetary warming, Trump was fulfilling a top campaign pledge. But he was also breaking from many of America’s staunches allies, who have expressed alarm about the decision.

Under former President Barack Obama, the U.S. had agreed to reduce emissions to 26 percent to 28 percent of 2005 levels by 2025 — about 1.6 billion tons.

But Trump said the agreement disadvantaged the U.S. “to the exclusive benefit of other countries,” leaving American businesses and taxpayers to absorb the cost.

“This agreement is less about the climate and more about other countries gaining a financial advantage over the United States,” he said, claiming that other countries have laughed at the U.S. for agreeing to the terms.”

Investors seemed pleased, with stock prices, already up for the day, bumping higher as he spoke. The Dow Jones industrial average rising 135 points for the day

Scientists say Earth is likely to reach more dangerous levels of warming sooner as a result of the president’s decision because America contributes so much to rising temperatures. Calculations suggest withdrawal could result in emissions of up to 3 billion tons of additional carbon dioxide in the air a year — enough to melt ice sheets faster, raise seas higher and trigger more extreme weather.

The U.S. is the world’s second-largest emitter of carbon, following only China. Beijing, however, has reaffirmed its commitment to meeting its targets under the Paris accord, recently canceling construction of about 100 coal-fired power plants and investing billions in massive wind and solar projects.

White House talking points obtained by The Associated Press said the Paris accord was “a BAD deal for Americans” and that the president’s action would keep “his campaign promise to put American workers first.”

“The Accord,” the document went on to say, “was negotiated poorly by the Obama Administration and signed out of desperation.”

“The U.S. is already leading the world in energy production and doesn’t need a bad deal that will harm American workers,” it read.

U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., following statement on President Trump’s announcement that the U.S. would withdraw from the Paris climate agreement, said in a prepared statement, “I applaud President Trump for making the decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement. The choice by the former Administration to join the agreement without any input from Congress was disingenuous and irresponsible. The Constitution requires the Senate to advise and consent to any treaty made by the president.”

He added, “The Paris agreement demanded too much from our country while letting others, such as China and India, off the hook for years. It was a bad deal for America. I look forward to working with the Trump Administration to continue positive policy reforms that support American energy and our economy.”

Earlier this month, Enzi signed a letter led by Senators James Inhofe, R-Okla., and John Barrasso, R-Wyo., to President Trump calling for the United States to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement. The senators noted that remaining in the Paris agreement would be a serious hindrance to undoing the Obama Administration’s overreaching Clean Power Plan regulation.

Congressman Liz Cheney (WY-AL) released the following statement, “I strongly support President Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement. This agreement imposed emissions standards that would have devastated America’s fossil fuel industry with no measurable impact on the climate. The agreement was based on flawed science and its purpose was to kill our coal industry.”