Igor Kovalenko/EPA
Guterres in Baku
What do the Taliban, Giorgia Meloni, António Guterres and the Vatican have in common? Everyone is present in Azerbaijan in the first days of COP29, to discuss the climate. Pollution hangs in the air, but also another shadow: his name is Donald Trump.
On the second day of COP29 in Baku (Tuesday), the head of the UN for Climate, Simon Stiellmentioned the elephant in the room: “Many of you have written about the climate implications of political events in recent weeks. I will just say that our process is robust. It is robust and will last.”
He referred to “political events” in the USA, and assured that the climate discussion will continue regardless of the result election that elected Donald Trump as president of the Americans.
Simon Stiell also called on countries around the world to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions more quickly, warning that “the climate crisis is quickly becoming an economy killer”quoted Lusa.
Who pays what to whom?
One of the first visitors to COP29 was the secretary general of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres. As is his prerogative, he arrived to put his finger on the wound: “Polluters must pay”, he said, defending air and maritime taxation.
“The difference between adaptation needs and finances could reach 359 billion in 2030”, and this means that developing countries will have to allocate a minimum of 40 billion annually 2025 with this objective, which they will not be able to do alone. Climate financing is not charity”, highlighted the Portuguese.
Also the Vatican was present at COP29, in the figure of the Italian cardinal Pietro Parolinand argued that there should be taxes imposed on the richest. “It is necessary to create a new financial ‘architecture’ so that the poorest and most vulnerable countries can fight the environmental crisis,” said the cardinal.
“There is a real ‘ecological debt’ especially between the south and the north and which is related to trade imbalances”, he commented, and highlighted the idea already mentioned by the Pope of forgive debt to the poorest countries.
Far-right leader Giorgia Meloni has other plans to mitigate the climate crisis. He started by saying this morning that “there is no alternative to fossil fuels“, except one, which he seems to want to bet on: nuclear energy.
“We have to have a realistic vision”, says the Italian Prime Minister to Lusa. “We need a balance and a transition process, we have to use all the energies at our disposalnot only renewables, but also biofuels and nuclear fusion, which can produce unlimited clean energy”, he stated.
Meloni highlighted that the Italy is “at the forefront of nuclear fusion” and organized the first meeting during the G7, even though there are no nuclear power plants in the country after they were closed in 1987 following a referendum.
The guest no one invited
To help with the “thematic joke”, an unwelcome visitor will join COP29. Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry announced on Sunday that the country’s Taliban military will participate in the conference of the United Nations on climate. The Prime Minister will not be present with the group at the Cop29 conference.
O The group’s government is not formally recognized by the UNrecalls the international community, which condemns the restrictions imposed on the basic rights of citizens (Afghan women, for example, are prohibited from attending school and working).
The UN had alreadyprevented the Taliban from taking control of Afghanistan’s seat in the General Assembly and continues to support the representatives appointed by the previous government of Ashraf Ghani to represent the country on the world stage.
