World leaders met in Baku, important names are missing – DW – 11/12/2024

The two-day World Leaders Action Summit at COP29 kicked off in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Tuesday, with nearly 100 leaders in attendance, although there were some notable absences.

The top priority of this year’s summit is expected to be reaching an agreement to increase financing for climate action in developing countries.

Some are pushing for the current $100 billion (€93 billion) annual commitment to be increased by ten times that amount at COP29 to cover the future cost of transitioning to clean energy and adapting to climate shocks.

Developing countries have warned that without adequate financing, countries may struggle to deliver ambitious updates to climate targets they are due early next year.

Among those not attending are the presidents of China and the United States.

Leaders of the 13 biggest carbon emitters (countries responsible for more than 70% of heat-trapping gases in 2023) will not attend this year’s meeting.

G20 leaders skipping the event include Chinese President Xi Jinping, US President Joe Biden, India’s Narendra Modi and France’s Emmanuel Macron.

“This is symptomatic of a lack of political will to act. There’s no sense of urgency,” climate scientist Bill Hare told The Associated Press.

However, Azerbaijani President and COP2 host Ilham Aliyev, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are among about 50 leaders who will speak on Tuesday.

UN warns time is running out to fight climate change

COP29 chief negotiator Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Yalcin Rafiyev emphasized at a press conference on Tuesday that “success does not depend only on one country.”

“Unless all countries can deeply reduce emissions, every country and household will be hit even harder than they are right now. We will be living in a nightmare,” he said.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned that time is running out in the fight against climate change.

“We are on the final countdown to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius,” Guterres said.

“And time is not on our side,” he added.

The Paris Agreement, a legally binding climate agreement signed by 196 countries after COP21 in 2015, calls for limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees compared to pre-industrial levels.

However, this goal seems increasingly impossible to achieve. The limit is expected to be exceeded for the first time this year, and the target is a multi-year average.

Guterres called 2024 “a master class in climate destruction.”

The UN chief also said nations must reach an agreement that does not leave poor countries “idle” in the fight against climate change.

Guterres said, “Developing countries should not leave Baku empty-handed. The agreement is essential.” he said.

Azerbaijani president calls oil ‘God’s gift’

Azerbaijani President Aliyev repeated a controversial remark in his speech on Tuesday that oil, gas and other natural resources are “gifts from God” and said nations should not be judged by natural resources and how they use them.

“Tell me that I said this was a gift from God, and I want to repeat that here today before this audience,” he told delegates.

Azerbaijan has seven billion barrels of oil reserves and was one of the first places in the world to start commercial oil production.

UK pledges to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 81% by 2035

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Britain will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 81% by 2035.

“I am pleased to announce at this COP that we are further strengthening our reputation as a climate leader with the UK’s 2035 NDC (nationally determined contributions) target to reduce all greenhouse gas emissions by at least 81% from 1990 levels.” Starmer spoke at the press conference about Baku.

The previous government had committed to reduce these emissions by 78 percent in the same period in 2021.

kb/wmr (AFP, AP)