Alexander Hurst urges sanctions on Trump officials over alleged ecocide
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · May 6
Alexander Hurst urges sanctions on Trump officials over alleged ecocide
1 articles · Updated · The Guardian · May 6
Writing from Paris, he says Europe should impose travel bans and asset seizures on Donald Trump, EPA chief Lee Zeldin, fossil fuel executives and tech billionaires tied to anti-environmental policies.
He cites logging on millions of acres, Alaska drilling, expanded seabed mining, weakened CO2 regulation and threats to species including polar bears and the roughly 50 remaining protected whales.
Hurst argues Europe is highly exposed to climate breakdown and should treat ecocide like other international crimes, despite weak enforcement of existing warrants against Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu.
As Europe weighs sanctions on US figures, what is the true economic risk to global energy and tech markets?
If 'ecocide' becomes an international crime, could corporate executives face prosecution for implementing national policies?
With U.S. climate policy shifting, can actions by other major emitters alone prevent a global climate catastrophe?
From Arctic Drilling to International Isolation: The Trump Administration’s Environmental Deregulation and Its Global Consequences
Overview
In 2026, Alexander Hurst labeled the Trump administration an "ecocidal regime," citing its aggressive environmental rollbacks, including opening the Arctic Refuge to drilling, widespread resource extraction, and dismantling pollution controls. These policies harmed ecosystems and public health, while the U.S. withdrew from key international climate bodies, undermining global cooperation and fueling illicit economies. Despite calls for European sanctions against U.S. officials and oligarchs, deep European dependencies on U.S. financial and defense systems, legal challenges, and risks of retaliation make such measures unlikely to succeed. Meanwhile, new international legal frameworks are emerging to hold leaders accountable for environmental harm, though enforcement against powerful states remains difficult.