At an informal consultation session organised by the future Presidency of the Conference of the Parties (COP29) on climate change, to be held in Baku (Azerbaijan) this year, delegations from the 198 States party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) were invited to express their expectations and vision for the event. These discussions form part of the 60th session of the UNFCCC’s subsidiary bodies, held in Bonn from 3 to 13 June, a preparatory meeting focused this year on the financing of the fight against climate change (see EUROPE 13422/1).
A negotiator from the European Union expressed his appreciation for the progress made on several agenda items, including the ad hoc work programme on the new climate finance framework and the revised text of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, which allows countries to cooperate voluntarily to meet their greenhouse gas emission reduction targets.
The negotiator also came back on the progress made on the Global Adaptation Target under the presidency of the United Arab Emirates.
However, the EU representative expressed concern at the lack of progress on the mitigation work programme, one of the main legacies of COP28. Despite numerous meetings, discussions on this major issue are stagnating.
The European delegation stressed the urgency of the situation and the commitment of many parties to tackle this challenge constructively.
The EU is also recommending that serious thought be given to this issue in the preparation of ‘Nationally Determined Contributions’ (NDCs). And it thanked the incoming Presidency for its efforts, notably under the COP Presidency Troika - a cooperation structure including the current, previous and future Presidencies - and the Mission 1.5 initiative, aimed at raising awareness and mobilising citizens on the importance of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The need for a “negotiating space” dedicated to mitigation was supported, in particular for the monitoring of global targets on energy transition, as stipulated in paragraph 28 of the decision on the Global Stocktake, aimed at assessing collective progress and informing the future work of the programmes and constituted bodies under the Paris Agreement. (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)