France exits fossil fuel treaty to boost renewables drive

BRUSSELS, Oct 21 (AFP): France is pulling out of a 1994 treaty that had the effect of protecting investment in fossil fuels when Europe is retooling towards a greener future, President Emmanuel Macron announced Friday.

"France has decided to withdraw from the Energy Charter Treaty," he told a news conference in Brussels after an EU summit, two days after the Netherlands made a similar announcement.

The move was done to be more "coherent" with the Paris climate accord to combat global warming by relying more heavily on renewable energy sources.