The outcome of the G20 leaders' summit in Brazil taking place on Monday and Tuesday on climate financing will be key to the success of the UN Cop 29 climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, summit president Mukhtar Babayev said today.
"We cannot succeed without [the G20], and the world is waiting to hear from them," Babayev said. The leaders' summit takes place at the beginning of the second week of the Cop 29 conference. Progress at Cop 29 last week towards agreeing a new climate finance target for developing countries — the so-called NCQG — was not sufficient, Babayev said. He is concerned that parties are not moving towards each other fast enough. Little progress was made in the first week on three main areas of disagreement: the amount of climate finance which should be provided, how it should be structured, and which countries should contribute. Babayev urged G20 leaders, including US president Joe Biden who will be present in Brazil, to send a "positive signal of commitment to solving the climate crisis," and deliver clear mandates for Cop 29.
The talks in Baku move from the technical to the political phase this week. Ministers typically have more authority to move red lines. But parties should focus on wrapping up less contentious issues early in the week so as to leave time for major political decisions, according to Simon Stiell, executive secretary of UN climate body the UNFCCC.
Babayev expects talks on the amount of climate financing which will be on the table to continue until the last day of the summit at the end of this week, he said.
The Cop presidency has invited former and upcoming Cop hosts the UK and Brazil to advise and "ensure an ambitious and balanced package of negotiated outcomes." Both countries have in the past week communicated more ambitious emissions reduction targets, which have been broadly welcomed.
The EU today called for the Cop presidency to step up its role in the process. "We do need a presidency to lead, to steer us in the direction of a safe landing ground," European commissioner for climate action Wopke Hoekstra said.
Hoekstra declined to be drawn on the amount of climate financing that the EU would like to see. Developing countries have pushed for a high goal of $1.3 trillion/yr, well above the previous target of $100bn/yr. The EU today reiterated instead its desire for the base of contributor countries to be enlarged beyond the current roster of countries defined as developed under the UNFCCC, and for as much private finance to be mobilised as possible to add to public finance.
