UNFCCC chief emphasizes urgency of global co-op on climate action at COP29

Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), stressed the importance of the UNFCCC negotiation process as the only platform for nations to tackle the escalating climate crisis and hold each other accountable.

Speaking at the opening of the COP29 climate conference in Baku on Monday, Stiell warned that without this platform, the world would be heading toward 5 degrees of global warming, News.Az reports.

"We negotiate specific pieces of this 'puzzle' every year, but we cannot afford to continue destroying lives and livelihoods in all countries. Let's achieve a result," Stiell urged.

He highlighted that the climate crisis impacts every person globally, exacerbating issues like rising food and electricity costs, reducing economic competitiveness, and increasing global instability.

"And I, like everyone else, am disappointed that no single COP conference can provide the full transformation that every country needs. Here in Baku, we must agree on a new global goal for climate finance. If at least two-thirds of the world's countries cannot afford to rapidly reduce emissions, then every country pays a higher price," Stiell emphasized.

According to him, if countries cannot ensure the sustainability of supply chains, the entire global economy will be brought to its knees. No country is insured, so the idea that climate finance is charity must be discarded. An ambitious new climate finance goal is fully in the interest of every country, including the largest and wealthiest.

"But it's not enough to just agree on a goal. We need to work harder to reform the global financial system. And here in Baku, we must launch international carbon markets by completing work on Article 6. We need to move forward on mitigation to ensure that the goals set in Dubai are realized," he said, adding that the 1.5-degree target cannot be allowed to move out of reach, and if it does, it must be reversed by implementing agreements.

News.Az