Today, the UN climate conference COP29 begins in Azerbaijan.
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg both boycotts the meeting and attacks the host country.
“The climate crisis is as much about protecting human rights as it is about protecting the climate and biological diversity,” she writes in a debate article in The Guardian.
Last week, the climate activist Greta Thunberg announced that she does not intend to participate in the UN climate meeting COP29 in Azerbaijan. One of the reasons was said to be a ban on crossing the country’s borders in any other way than by air, writes Blank spot.
“Escalating climate collapse”
Azerbaijan is also a major oil producer and Thunberg is now attacking both the meeting – and the host country.
“Azerbaijan’s entire economy is based on fossil fuels,” she writes in a debate article in The Guardian.
Furthermore, she accuses the country of ethnic cleansing and of contributing to famine, increased inequality and an “escalating climate collapse”.
“Azerbaijan has no ambition to take climate action. The country plans to expand the production of fossil fuels, which is completely incompatible with the 1.5-degree limit and the goals i The Paris Agreement on climate change”.
“Some kind of joke”
In addition, she is furious that the chosen theme for the meeting is peace. And the slogan “A Cop of peace” has been used to promote the summit.
“The ‘theme’ chosen for COP29 must be some kind of dark joke. This summit, like the previous ones, is pure green painting,” she writes.
Nor will Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) attend the meeting, citing other commitments at home in Sweden. Among other things, a party leader debate.
Facts: UN climate conference
The UN climate summits, COP, are held in different locations each year. COP stands for “Conference of the Parties” and refers to the parties to the UN Climate Convention.
The first climate summit COP1 was held in Berlin, Germany in 1995.
At the meeting in Kyoto in Japan in 1997, the first global climate agreement, the Kyoto Protocol, was negotiated.
In the Paris Agreement of 2015, most of the world’s countries agreed to keep the increase in the global average temperature well below 2 degrees, and most preferably below 1.5 degrees, compared to pre-industrial times. This must primarily be done through reduced emissions of greenhouse gases.
COP29 is being held in Baku, Azerbaijan, from 11 to 22 November.
In 2024, two other important COPs will also be held. It is partly the recently concluded meeting on biological diversity, partly a meeting held in December on desertification.