Davos, Switzerland (CNN) President Donald Trump attacked climate activists as "perennial prophets of doom" on Tuesday while addressing the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland, where the agenda is focused on tackling the climate crisis.

Trump's remarks underscored the chasm between his denialist view of climate change and the overwhelming scientific consensus driving the rest of the developed world to action. Speaking shortly after the teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg accused world leaders of not taking action, Trump rejected calls for urgent action and encouraged the world to instead embrace "optimism."

"To embrace the possibilities of tomorrow, we must reject the perennial prophets of doom and their predictions of the apocalypse," Trump said.

"They are the errors of yesterday's fortune tellers and we have them and I have them and they want to see us do badly, but we don't let that happen," he added.

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