The US maintains the threat of leaving the IEA if it does not change its stance in favour of clean energy.

Chris Wright, the Secretary of Energy of the United States, reiterated the warning that his country could withdraw from the International Energy Agency if it does not modify its approach, which he believes favours clean energy, although he committed to making efforts to prevent that from happening. «If the IEA fails to return to its original purpose, we will become ex-members of the IEA, but we will strive to prevent that from happening,» Wright stated during a press conference at the ministerial meeting of this Paris-based organisation. Wright refrained from commenting on the future of Fatih Birol, who has been the director of the IEA since 2015, and reiterated his criticisms of the energy policy of European nations. The Secretary of Energy admitted that if the United States decides to leave the IEA, «there is always a risk» that China might take the opportunity to integrate into the organisation. «We are determined not to have to leave» the agency, the senior U.S. official emphasised. Wright expressed: «It is not possible to promote an agenda of energy security and human development while pursuing a mission that seeks to limit access to energy, increase its cost and tell people that they cannot live like those of us who are present here.»