#withdrawal from cop29

[thoughtlessarse]

Argentinian negotiators representing the government of the climate science denier Javier Milei have been ordered to withdraw from the Cop29 summit after only three days, adding to concerns about the stability of the Paris agreement. More than 80 representatives from the South American country are in Baku, Azerbaijan, for two weeks of negotiations about climate finance for the energy transition. Argentina’s far-right leader has previously called the climate crisis a “socialist lie”, and during his election campaign last year he threatened to withdraw from the Paris agreement, though he has since backed down. On Wednesday, representatives from Milei’s government were ordered to leave the Azerbaijani capital. Speaking to the Guardian, Argentina’s undersecretary for the environment, Ana Lamas – the country’s most senior representative on the climate and nature after Milei dissolved the environment ministry – confirmed the decision, which was first reported by Climatica. “It’s true. We have instructions from the ministry of foreign affairs to no longer participate. That’s all I can tell you,” she said. Lamas said the decision applied only to Cop29, when asked if Argentina was planning to leave the Paris agreement. There is widespread concern about the future of the climate accord after the election in the US of Donald Trump, who has pledged to exit the agreement for the second time. Before the talks, the UN secretary general, António Guterres, said a second US departure might “cripple” the global deal to limit heating to below 2C above preindustrial levels. There are fears that other countries may leave the international climate agreements, including those led by climate deniers such as Argentina. On Tuesday, Milei spoke with Trump, after which Milei’s spokesperson said Trump had told his Argentinian counterpart he was his “favourite president”.

continue reading

[mariacallous]

The last time Donald Trump entered the White House and menaced efforts to stop the climate from overheating, affronted world leaders closed ranks against him.

Such defiance and unity are practically unthinkable this time.

Trump’s peers are disunited, focused inward and have already largely abandoned the vanguard of the fight to stop the planet from burning up. 

Their list of excuses, in fairness, contains many serious considerations. Wars and trade disputes have eroded international cooperation. A pile-up of global and domestic challenges has pushed climate change down — or off — the agenda when world leaders meet. The European powerhouses that eagerly claimed the climate mantle after Trump’s 2016 election are now fumbling through a house of mirrors as they confront economic decline, populism and what French President Emmanuel Macron warns could be the failure of the EU project. Many of these problems, by the way, will likely become even more daunting during a Trump presidency.

Simply put, leaders are distracted. The global order of recent generations is crumbling. It is, lamented U.N. climate change chief Simon Stiell in a recent speech, a “moment of profound fracture between nations and within them.” 

It’s also an inauspicious backdrop for the annual U.N. climate summit, which begins on Monday in Baku, Azerbaijan. The COP29 conference is doomed to be defined not only by Trump’s return to power, but also by the absence of those who might resist him.

What else to make of the list of leaders planning to miss the talks? Joe Biden is skipping. As is Macron, who once reveled in countering Trump’s gleeful climate denial. The European Union’s top executive, Ursula von der Leyen, who has made it her personal mission to deliver world-leading climate targets for 450 million people, is also a pass. Germany’s Olaf Scholz was supposed to go, but his government collapsed a day after Trump’s election, leading to his quick withdrawal. The host of next year’s climate talks, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, is out thanks to a minor brain hemorrhage — and no, that’s not a metaphor. 

Trump won’t be there either, of course, having a whole government to set up in Washington.

“Is there any leader that sees climate as a key driver of contemporary politics and society?”  asked Luca Bergamaschi, founder of the Italian climate think tank Ecco.

“Probably not.”

Trump’s return finds the world’s leaders more Star Wars cantina than Plato’s Symposium. And it raises a question that will shape not only this year’s global climate talks but also the future of humankind: Do political leaders really matter when it comes to stopping the planet from burning up?

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

Rio G-20 Summit: Brazil Urges Progress on Economic Inequality

Donald Trump has yet to be inaugurated as U.S. president, but his anti-multilateralist approach already lurks over global diplomacy. Argentine President Javier Milei shook up this week’s G-20 leaders’ summit in Rio de Janeiro with Trump-style tactics after meeting with the U.S. president-elect last Thursday at his Mar-a-Lago resort.

In the days before the G-20 summit, Argentine diplomats suddenly objected to points in an official communiqué from the group that had been months in the making, including language about the importance of promoting gender equality and taxing the ultra-rich.

The communiqué requires unanimous consent to be adopted, and Argentina’s stance threatened to block key points that Brazil fought for. It was not Argentina’s only unorthodox diplomatic move of late: The country pulled its negotiating team from the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) last week.

The government did not explain its reasoning for withdrawing from COP29, but Milei has previously called climate change a “socialist lie.”

Frustrated G-20 countries successfully pushed back against Argentina at the summit in Rio. Argentina “is in a very difficult situation economically,” and pressure from other countries was effective, the University of Brasília’s Roberto Goulart Menezes told The Associated Press. Argentina’s objections were reduced to a statement issued separately by Milei.

Although G-20 countries still have rifts over the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, negotiators ultimately agreed to include vague condemnations of human suffering in both conflicts in the communiqué. They even posed for a group photo for the first time since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

The communiqué broke new ground on addressing economic inequality. It pledged to cooperate “to ensure that ultra-high-net-worth individuals are effectively taxed,” referring to G-20 ministerial-level talks that studied proposals to tax billionaires.

Continue reading.

[dougielombax]

I agree entirely.

Any environmentalist with even a bit of sense knows that Azerbaijan is more interested in greenwashing and weaponising an eco-friendly image to justify genocide and ethnic cleaning.

I’ll include a few additional articles from the last few months on the subject too.

Here they are.

I also made a prior post concerning this. Check for it in the tags.

Reblog the shit out of this.

[darkmaga-returns]

Trump’s election deals a fatal blow to the climate change agenda.

Doomberg

Nov 09, 2024

“The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make US manufacturing non-competitive.” – Donald J. Trump

The next United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference (COP29) kicks off on Monday in Baku, Azerbaijan—not that anybody would know it. A record-shattering 86,000 attendees participated in last year’s meeting in the United Arab Emirates, but the upcoming event will be lucky to attract half that number. Government and corporate leaders alike are finding creative reasons not to attend. Late last week, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced his decision to skip the meeting, citing the recent collapse of his coalition government as the proximate cause. Here’s more from Politico:

“Scholz’s withdrawal adds to a growing list of leaders deciding to miss the talks. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also reversed her plans to attend this week, citing the ongoing hearings to confirm her EU’s executive branch team. France's Emmanuel Macron, Canada’s Justin Trudeau, South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, the United States’ Joe Biden, Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese are also not scheduled to attend.”

COP flop | Getty

While the opening quote to this piece could likely serve as an expression of Trump’s sentiment on the event, the statement itself was made back in 2012. He occasionally softens his stance in the name of political expediency, but the demands of the Church of Carbon™ are wholly incompatible with his agenda to catalyze a domestic investment boom in energy, heavy industry, and advanced technology. If carbon emissions are among the other numbers that go up, so be it.

Taken together with his rather consistent view that China has taken full advantage of naïve US leadership for decades, one can model what Trump’s return to office might entail on the environmental front. As we recently noted, “China has been happy to nod along with the West’s rejection of coal while gorging on the stuff itself,” a pattern that has generated significant advantage for its domestic industrial sector while serving as the dominant source of incremental global carbon emissions for the past 25 years. The blatant hypocrisy of it all is plain as day to the displaced working class in the US, something Trump tapped into with a stunning vigor. If anyone wonders why the pickup truck demographic in flyover country turned out in droves to vote last Tuesday, this chart should prove instructive:

[bananapancakewithcondensedmilk]

🌍 Global Trends: November 24, 2024 🌍

The world is shifting under the weight of key trends that demand systemic understanding and action. Here’s a breakdown of today’s critical global developments and the root causes driving them:

1. Climate Change and Environmental Challenges

Trend: COP29 in Baku ends with a $300B annual fund for poorer nations—criticized as too little. Developing countries walked out in protest.

Systemic Causes:

🌍 Fossil fuel dependence driving emissions.

💰 Economic disparities between high emitters and vulnerable nations.

🏛️ Political inertia delaying transformative action.

2. Geopolitical Tensions and Espionage

Trend: Russia allegedly enlists criminal gangs for espionage and sabotage in Europe.

Systemic Causes:

🔗 Ongoing power struggles between nations.

🤖 Advanced tech enabling covert operations.

⚖️ Weak global regulations to deter such actions.

3. Political Shifts and Policy Uncertainty

Trend: Trump’s second term looms, sparking climate policy uncertainty and potential U.S. withdrawal from global agreements.

Systemic Causes:

🇺🇸 Polarized views on climate change.

💼 Short-term economic interests vs. long-term sustainability.

🏦 Lobbyist influence in shaping policies.

4. Social Movements and Public Dissent

Trend: Developing nations voice anger at COP29 over inadequate financial commitments.

Systemic Causes:

⚖️ Historical exploitation and inequality.

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Resource disparities across countries.

🗳️ Limited influence of vulnerable nations in global decisions.

5. Technological Vulnerabilities and Cybersecurity

Trend: Cyber incidents, like undersea cable sabotage and platform hacks, highlight growing threats.

Systemic Causes:

🌐 Rapid tech adoption without sufficient safeguards.

🔌 Interconnected systems increasing vulnerabilities.

📜 Lack of unified cybersecurity standards.

6. Economic Instability and Market Fluctuations

Trend: Geopolitical tensions and climate uncertainties disrupt global markets.

Systemic Causes:

🌎 Interconnected global economies amplifying local impacts.

⚒️ Dependence on finite resources.

🛑 Regulatory inconsistencies across borders.

7. Health Crises and Pandemic Preparedness

Trend: Persistent health challenges show the need for stronger global systems.

Systemic Causes:

🏙️ Urbanization increasing disease spread.

✈️ Global travel accelerating transmission.

🏥 Healthcare inequities deepening divides.

🛠️ What Can We Do? Systemic issues require systemic solutions. Collaboration, reform, and proactive policies are essential to tackle these challenges while promoting sustainable development. Let’s work together toward a more equitable and resilient world. 💪

[businesspr]

Exxon Chief to Trump: Don’t Withdraw From Paris Climate Deal

Darren Woods was one of only a few Western oil executives attending a global climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan. source https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/12/business/energy-environment/exxon-mobil-baku-climate-cop29.html

[dougielombax]

Just leaving this here.

Feel free to reblog.

Also this

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

COP29 highlights Brazil’s challenge to restore multilateralism

COP30 must overcome legacy of limited progress at previous climate conferences while also navigating obstacles of a Trump administration

The legacy of COP29, the United Nations Climate Change Conference that concluded early Sunday morning in Baku, Azerbaijan, is a stark reminder of the fragility of global efforts to address the climate crisis, particularly in financing. For Brazil, which will host COP30 in 2025, the key challenge will be restoring confidence in the multilateral process to tackle the climate emergency after a series of climate conferences that have yielded opaque outcomes.

The 2023 COP in Dubai was one of the most surprising conferences, as it led to a collective decision by countries to distance themselves from fossil fuels. However, at COP29 in Baku, this decision stalled, with Saudi Arabia being a primary blocker.

If COP30 already faced the burden of following climate conferences that have made minimal progress in addressing humanity’s greatest challenge, Brazil will also have to contend with the United States under Donald Trump’s presidency. Even if Mr. Trump follows through on his pledge to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, the process takes time to finalize. His delegation could still attend COP30 in Belém, and block key decisions that require unanimous approval from participating countries.

“COP29 delivered weak results in finance and even worse in mitigation,” said Mark Lutes, a global climate policy expert at WWF International. “But it could have been much worse had Baku failed to reach any agreement on financing. In that case, COP30 in Belém would need to recover lost ground, fix the mistakes of COP29, and the agenda would have no chance of moving forward,” Mr. Lutes said.

Continue reading.

[thoughtlessarse]

Papua New Guinea’s decision to pull out of an upcoming UN global climate summit due to frustration over “empty promises and inaction” has prompted concern from climate advocates, who fear the move will isolate the Pacific nation and put vital funding at risk. Prime minister James Marape announced in August the country would not attend Cop29 in “protest at the big nations” for a lack of “quick support to victims of climate change”. Then last week, foreign affairs minister Justin Tckatchenko, confirmed Papua New Guinea would withdraw from high-level talks at the summit, which begins on 11 November in Baku, Azerbaijan, describing it as “a total waste of time”. Leading Papua New Guinea climate advocate Duncan Gabi said the move risks isolating the country from critical discussions and will weaken its ability to seek financial and technical support for climate adaptation and mitigation. “We are living in a world where the impacts of climate change are increasingly devastating, particularly for vulnerable nations like ours. It is important for us to have a seat at the table and have our voices heard at the Cop,” Gabi said. Cop, the UN’s annual year-ending climate summit, has faced persistent criticism that big-emitting countries have not done enough to take meaningful climate action. Papua New Guinea is among the first nations to declare it will not attend due to big emitting countries failing to act as they have promised. The country has a population of about 10 million and lies just north of Australia. It is home to world’s third largest expanse of rainforest, according to the World Wildlife Fund. Impoverished, surrounded by ocean, and prone to natural disasters, Papua New Guinea is also considered to be highly vulnerable to the perils of climate change.

continue reading

COP28 was held in the oil producer nation of the UAE. COP29 is being held in the oil producing nation of Azerbeijan. Both have used the occasion to make fossil fuels deals, while the most polluting countries, i.e. those who buy oil and gas from the UAE and Azerbaijan (amongst others) pay lip service to the fight against climate change but do very little about it where the countries most affected are concerned.