Australia will not oppose a successful bid by Türkiye to host the COP31 climate summit next year, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said. He warned that a prolonged impasse over headquarters rights could undermine the unity needed to help Pacific island nations.
Australia and Turkey submitted bids in 2022 to host COP31, but neither withdrew. , stating that UN rules do not allow this for the annual summit.
But on Tuesday (18) he said there was “considerable concern” among several countries, including Pacific nations, that the lack of consensus could undermine efforts to form a united diplomatic front to act on the issues.
“If Australia is not chosen, if Turkey is chosen, we will not seek to veto that. What we will seek is to ensure that the Pacific benefits from this,” Albanese told reporters.
“What we are doing is continuing to engage in dialogue… not just with Turkey, but also with other countries, to ensure that Pacific interests are protected,” he added.
A government spokesman said Australia had not withdrawn its bid and hoped Turkey would not block Australia’s entry if it won.
“If Turkey were chosen, we would not block its candidacy. But Turkey was not chosen. Australia has the overwhelming support of its peers,” the spokesperson said.
together with Pacific island nations for the first time, with the support of the 18-member Pacific Islands Forum. Many Pacific states are on the front lines of sea level rise and have been pushing for more global efforts on climate finance and emissions reductions.
Under UN rules, the 28-member bloc “Western Europe and Others Group”, which includes Australia and Turkey and which will host COP31, must decide unanimously. Consensus needs to be reached at COP30, which is being held in Belém, Brazil, and is scheduled to end on Friday (21).
If neither Australia nor Turkey back down, the conference will be held in Bonn, Germany – headquarters of the UN climate agency –, although it has already declared that it does not wish to take over the organization of the event.
