Belem, Brazil: Nearly 200 nations reached a modest agreement at the UN climate summit in the Brazilian Amazon on Saturday, as countries accepted weaker terms on phasing out fossil fuels in order to preserve unity. The deal was approved by consensus after two weeks of intense negotiations on the fringes of the rainforest, with the notable absence of the United States, whose President Donald Trump shunned the talks. Applause rang out as the gavel fell in steamy Belem, capping a summit marked by raucous protests, a damaging fire, and massive street marches.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who had staked significant political capital on the summit’s success, said the pact showed a fractured world could still come together in crisis. “The international community faced a choice:

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