Gore blasts Trump for backing out of Paris climate accords, 'reckless and indefensible action'

Former Vice President and climate change activist Al Gore blasted President Donald Trump for his decision to pull the United States out of the historic Paris climate deal on Thursday, calling the move a "reckless and indefensible action."

In a statement that echoed the response issued by former President Barack Obama -- who entered the U.S. into the original deal -- Gore took a much more forceful tone, insisting that the need to lead now falls on city and state officials across the country.

SEE ALSO: Relentless climate crisis crusader Al Gore returns to big screen with 'An Inconvenient Sequel'

The statement comes as Gore prepares to release "An Inconvenient Sequel," a follow-up to his landmark 2006 climate-focused documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth." The film is set to come out on July 28.

SEE MORE: Learn about why Trump backed out of the deal

Read Gore's full statement below:

Removing the United States from the Paris Agreement is a reckless and indefensible action. It undermines America's standing in the world and threatens to damage humanity's ability to solve the climate crisis in time. But make no mistake: if President Trump won't lead, the American people will.

Civic leaders, mayors, governors, CEOs, investors and the majority of the business community will take up this challenge. We are in the middle of a clean energy revolution that no single person or group can stop. President Trump's decision is profoundly in conflict with what the majority of Americans want from our president; but no matter what he does, we will ensure that our inevitable transition to a clean energy economy continues.

Read the statement from Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk, directors of "An Inconvenient Truth" regarding the decision below:

We were shocked and disappointed to hear President Trump's announcement today regarding withdrawing the U.S. from the historic international deal reached in Paris. In our new film, An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power we filmed behind-the-scenes in Paris to show the hard work, finesse, and passion that went into making the agreement happen. We hope that the hard work of those who made the deal happen will not be in vain. The good news is that there is a great deal to be hopeful about. The technology exists to create enough clean energy for the world economy and to avoid total climate catastrophe. Now that President Trump is pledging to do less to keep America's commitment to the world, we must all step up to do more to ensure the health of our planet.