ASTANA – As global climate talks grow increasingly fractured, Mukhtar Babayev, the president of the COP29, or the 29th United Nations Climate Change conference, discussed climate goals, Azerbaijan’s presidency, and risks moving forward in an interview with The Astana Times.
Mr. Babayev was appointed COP29 President in January 2024, having led Azerbaijan’s delegation to five previous COPs. Photo credit: The Astana Times/ Fatima Kemelova
Babayev, who attended the Astana International Forum on May 29-30, said the forum provided an opportunity to convey a message about Azerbaijan’s COP29 presidency and promote the outcomes achieved in November 2024 in Baku.
“That’s why Astana and this forum are another chance for Azerbaijan’s COP29 to continue this agenda here in this region,” Babayev said.
Key takeaways from COP29
Speaking about COP29, Babayev mentioned inclusivity and transparency as two important priorities Azerbaijan has set.
“In all 10 months of preparation for this forum, we tried and we achieved this inclusivity and transparency. Inclusivity, in this case, we invited all parties and all groups – indigenous people, business people, financial institutions, governments, non-governmental organizations, youth, and all society representatives – to be part of the discussions and to be part of the negotiations. I think it is a very good demonstration of how society, big countries, and the world community can be together to demonstrate solidarity for the green world,” Babayev explained.
Assel Satubaldina and Mukhtar Babayev during their conversation on the sidelines of the Astana International Forum. Photo credit: The Astana Times/ Fatima Kemelova
He also emphasized that transparency was central to the COP29 process, both in negotiations and in the reparation mechanisms, and played a key role in securing positive outcomes. Among the major achievements was the agreement on the new collective quantified goal, or NCQG, which aims to mobilize at least $300 billion for developing countries. This NCQG replaced the 2009 climate finance pledge, which aimed for developed nations to provide $100 billion annually by 2020 to help developing countries with climate adaptation and mitigation efforts.
“We will work with all parties, with all donors and other representatives of the financial institutions and other sources to increase this amount. One of the outcomes from Baku was the Baku to Belém Roadmap to increase [international climate finance] from $300 million to $1.3 trillion for 2035,” he said.
The official website of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change indicates this roadmap aims at “scaling up climate finance to developing country parties to support low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development pathways and implement the nationally determined contributions and national adaptation plans.”
At the COP30 in Belém, Brazil, countries are also expected to discuss their updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) for 2035.
Babayev noted another key breakthrough from Baku, which included the agreement on Article 6, now enabling private sector investments in the global carbon market after over a decade of negotiations.
Babayev also emphasized the operationalization of the Loss and Damage Fund as a crucial takeaway from COP29.
“Now this fund is already working,” he added. Countries began to contribute to the fund, and it is expected to start disbursing resources in 2025, particularly to provide critical support for those affected by the devastating consequences of climate change.
Geopolitical dynamics
When asked how geopolitical dynamics influence global climate action, particularly the withdrawal of the United States from the Paris agreement, Babayev sounded optimistic.
“The world already faced once in 2016-2017 approximately the same situation. We respect the positions of the countries. Now on board are 196 countries. I understand that the U.S. is a big emitter, big contributor, and big financial source, possibly for the climate projects. But the world is not only one country,” he said.
Many countries, Babayev noted, such as the United Kingdom, China, Australia and the European countries, are increasingly active in stepping up their climate leadership. The priority, he noted, is not only to maintain momentum but also to deepen trust between countries and regions, particularly between the Global North and the Global South.
“We need the solidarity for these issues. (…) We hope that the policy will continue, the climate agenda will continue, because climate change is already here. We face it daily with heat waves and precipitation. We lose the glaciers. [There are] desertification issues,” he said.
Future for energy-producing nations
For energy giants like Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, the challenge is also an opportunity. While the Western countries label these countries “petro states,” Babayev underscored the importance of the countries’ efforts toward greener development.
“A lot of projects are now implemented in Kazakhstan to use alternative energy more and to use the chance to export alternative energy. Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan signed the agreement at COP29, regarding the export of alternative energy from Central Asia through Azerbaijan to the international market. It is the energy corridor. It is huge, a big corridor from east to west,” he explained.
Caspian Sea
Region-wise, the Caspian Sea, the largest landlocked reservoir in the world, with a total area of 392,600 square kilometers, is also a critical issue, Babayev added. He has high hopes for the seventh Caspian Summit slated for September in Tehran.
“We need to think about how to protect the Caspian Sea from different risks and challenges. One of the biggest is the decline in the level of the Caspian Sea,” he said. The declining water level of the Caspian Sea, driven by climate change, reduced river inflows, and increased evaporation, poses major risks to agriculture, infrastructure, biodiversity, and logistics.
“That is why the Tehran Convention is one of the platforms for all five countries [that share the Caspian Sea] to move these discussions further, to find a way to mitigate or to adapt, to prepare the adaptation plan for this process,” Babayev said, noting that scientific collaboration will also be critical to protect the Caspian ecosystem.
