Pre-COP29: Global leaders meet in Baku to tackle climate change and scale up finance solutions

euronews (in English)

In this episode of Road To COP29, world leaders gather at Pre-COP29 in Baku to address urgent climate issues and promote global cooperation.

Transcript

00:00We need to understand also that climate is changing regardless of our opinions, regardless of our actions.

00:08So we need to adapt ourselves and we need to adjust our approach to the whole issue.

00:16Take into account that every passing day is against us.

00:20Time is running against us and we understand that we should act and we should act now.

00:30We are minutes to midnight in our efforts to limit the rise in global temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

00:46And we are witnessing the consequences of inaction in real time.

00:50Extreme weather is devastating lives and livelihoods around the world,

00:54with those who contribute the least paying the highest price.

00:58But there is hope and we are moving in the right direction.

01:01A stark warning, yet one with optimism that it's not too late.

01:05Pre-COP29 in Baku was one of the last ministerial gatherings before the main conference in Azerbaijan.

01:12On many issues regarding the negotiated outcomes, we have some already points of convergence.

01:19And that already once again proves the importance of it.

01:23It creates a platform and avenue for the parties to get engaged bilaterally, multilaterally with each other,

01:29consulting on several issues regarding the climate action and driving the negotiation process forward.

01:36Pre-COP29 was held amidst calls that Baku must host an enabling COP

01:42and one with increased global alignment on climate ambition.

01:46Most people have to understand that the urgency is there.

01:52We have a few years, according to science, to be able to stabilize the increase of temperature.

01:59But at the same time, to stabilize in those few years,

02:03we need financial resources and we need international cooperation.

02:07So that is the main objective of this COP,

02:12is to make sure that we can have everybody together having the resources and then ambition.

02:20Scaling up development finance and overhauling debt architecture was high on the agenda across the board.

02:27I think it's the time to run. We need to move more fast.

02:34And it is a very good time to invest today to save tomorrow.

02:40We need to scale up the climate finance.

02:45This is the main challenge and main topic for COP29.

02:50And we consolidated, all of us, all the countries, to have the agreement in Azerbaijan.

02:57The COP presidency's troika that was set up to build continuity and coherence between COP28, 29 and 30 respectively,

03:06was already visible in force as the UAE, Azerbaijan and Brazil came together to support Mission 1.5°C

03:14and to build on existing presidency initiatives.

03:17In the previous years, there have been some cases when one COP presidency handed over the presidency to another one,

03:24losing all the progress that has been made.

03:27So therefore, troika's first importance is to ensure the continuity of the progress that is being made by one COP presidency

03:34that can be handed over to the next one.

03:36But at the same time, the current troika has its own mandate

03:41to create an enabling environment for the parties to prepare and submit their nationally determined contributions,

03:50the more ambitious ones, by February 2025.

03:54COP29 goals include a switch away from fossil fuels and expansion of clean energy,

03:59all solutions that could contribute to its legacy.

04:03I believe that we can do the right thing, because the same way that humans have spoiled the climate

04:11by doing many things that have a very strong and negative impact on climate,

04:18we also know that humans have created some solutions for some of these challenges.

04:25So I'm an optimist and I think we can definitely get together and have an international cooperation

04:32that will allow the world to use the good ideas and not only to concentrate on insisting on ideas that we know don't work.

04:44And it's that unified international cooperation already taking place in Baku at events like pre-COP,

04:50which is needed to solve the ongoing climate crisis as we move forwards to a better future.

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