A Multilateralist Analysis of the Paris Agreement: How do Political and Economic Inequality and Domestic Pressures Affect Climate Commitments

Ting Li

doi:10.54254/2753-7048/2025.LD28941

Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public MediaOpen access

A Multilateralist Analysis of the Paris Agreement: How do Political and Economic Inequality and Domestic Pressures Affect Climate Commitments

Research Article

Open Access

A Multilateralist Analysis of the Paris Agreement: How do Political and Economic Inequality and Domestic Pressures Affect Climate Commitments

Ting Li ^1*

¹ University of California Davis

^*Corresponding author: somzyyy126@gmail.com

Published on 5 November 2025

LNEP Vol.115

ISSN (Print): 2753-7056

ISSN (Online): 2753-7048

ISBN (Print): 978-1-80590-513-4

ISBN (Online): 978-1-80590-514-1

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Abstract

The Paris Agreement has played a landmark role in guiding global climate governance. Each nationally determined contribution mechanism represented a bargaining strategy in global climate negotiations, in which countries set appropriate emission reduction targets based on their own economic capacity, development needs, and international support. However, countries differed in their economic capacity and national interests, the agreement faced obstacles to implementation, and needed to be further refined to provide a flexible framework for implementing climate commitments and actions. This paper mainly explored how economic gap affected countries’ negotiating power, analyzed how economic power shaped the formulation of nationally determined contribution mechanisms from the perspective of multilateralism theory, and examined the impact of domestic political and economic pressures on different countries’ climate policies. It also evaluated why developed countries provided financial assistance to developing countries to push for global emission reduction commitments and promote effective global cooperation. Moreover, this paper discussed whether countries exited or renegotiated the agreement when faced with unmet goals, and how to avoid this happening. Finally, the research results showed that, although the economic gap prevents the achievement of goals, countries are more inclined to renegotiate rather than exit the agreement as an option. Through multilateral frameworks combined with financial and technical support, more countries can be encouraged to participate and make stronger commitments to climate action. This reflected the continuous importance of the Paris Agreement as a cooperation platform. Therefore, the flexibility of the framework had certain beneficial significance for maintaining international commitments and enhancing long-term mutual trust among countries.

Keywords:

Multilateralism theory, Paris Agreement, Climate Commitment, Political Inequality, Economic Inequality

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References

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References

[2]. Ruggie, John. “Multilateralism: The Anatomy of an Institution.” The MIT Press, The MIT Press, 10 Mar. 2017, https: //scholar.harvard.edu/files/john-ruggie/files/multilateralism.pdf

[5]. “Ethiopia’s Climate‐resilient Green Economy.” United Nations, https: //sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?page=view& type=400& nr=677& menu=1515.Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.

Cite this article

Li,T. (2025). A Multilateralist Analysis of the Paris Agreement: How do Political and Economic Inequality and Domestic Pressures Affect Climate Commitments. Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media,115,63-68.

Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.

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ISBN: 978-1-80590-513-4(Print) / 978-1-80590-514-1(Online)

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Conference date: 21 November 2025

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Volume number: Vol.115

ISSN: 2753-7048(Print) / 2753-7056(Online)

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