“He is really into climate change,” Mr Trump told Piers Morgan on ITV’s Good Morning Britain. “I like that... I totally listened to him.
“He wants to make sure future generations have climate that is good climate and that is not a disaster.
“I think we had a great conversation,” the president added. “I tell you what moved me is his passion for future generations.
Coral reefs: Trying to combat climate change damage
Show all 25
“This is real, he believes that, he wants to have a world that is good for future generations and I do, too.”
But when asked if he believed in climate change, Mr Trump replied: “I believe that there is a change in weather and I think it changes both ways.
“Don’t forget it used to be called global warming, that wasn’t working, then it’s climate change, now it’s extreme weather.”
He argued that the US had experienced worse weather in the past, referring to hurricanes in the 1890s.
Mr Trump also claimed that the US was “among the cleanest climates” and blamed China, Russia and India for high pollution, suggesting that “in some other cities you can’t even breathe.”
It came as Joe Biden, the forerunner for the Democrat 2020 presidential nomination, released a climate change plan that would pour $1.7 trillion (£1.3 trillion) of investment into achieving 100 per cent clean energy and net-zero emissions by 2050.
Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events
His campaign team later admitted that parts of the proposals were copied word-for-word from texts previously published by climate activist groups Blue Green Alliance and the Carbon Capture Coalition.
Mr Biden’s team said the citations of the sources had been “inadvertently left out”.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments