BERLIN (AP) — Germany says the U.S. government's decision to pull out of the Paris climate agreement is "regrettable" but no surprise.

Environment Minister Svenja Schulze said Tuesday that the U.S. had announced its plan to withdraw from the pact two years ago and "luckily it has remained alone in doing so."

Nearly 200 nations signed the landmark 2015 climate deal to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) by the end of the century, with each country providing its own goals for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases.

Schulze said the "domino effect" some had feared after U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement didn't occur.

"The rest of the world stands together on climate protection," she said in a statement, noting that even Russia, a fossil fuel exporter, recently joined the pact.