COP29 in Azerbaijan: A Compromised Climate Conference

The author contends that hosting COP29 in Azerbaijan—a country with an authoritarian regime and a growing fossil fuel industry—threatens the summit's potential for real change. The text highlights Azerbaijan's lack of net-zero targets, its expansion of gas production, and its poor human rights record, including the detention of environmental activists. It also criticizes the European Union for increasing gas imports from Azerbaijan, which the author claims bolsters the regime's power. Finally, the document calls for the UN to reform the COP host selection process by introducing mandatory climate action and human rights requirements.

• Azerbaijan's climate efforts are described as "critically insufficient" by the Climate Action Tracker, as the country has no net-zero target and its emissions are projected to increase by approximately 20 per cent through 2030.
• The host nation is expanding its extractivism, with gas output expected to rise by over 30 per cent in the next decade, and plans to increase mining for gold and copper.
• The European Union has increased its imports of Azeri gas from 2 per cent to 3 per cent following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine and has signed agreements to double these imports by 2027.
• The COP29 chief executive, Elnur Soltanov, holds conflicting interests as he is both the Deputy Minister of Energy and a board member of Azerbaijan's state oil company; he has suggested that maintaining a 1.5°C limit does not require reducing fossil fuel production.
• Azerbaijan's human rights environment is deemed unsuitable for open climate dialogue, with approximately 300 individuals, including environmental activists and journalists, detained on politically motivated charges.
• The document identifies a systemic flaw in the UN's COP host selection process, noting that there are currently no requirements for candidate countries to meet specific climate aspirations or human rights standards.

APA

Besliu, R. (2024). COP29 in Azerbaijan: A Compromised Climate Conference. Green European Journal. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/cop29-in-azerbaijan-a-compromised-climate-conference/

Chicago

Besliu, Raluca. COP29 in Azerbaijan: A Compromised Climate Conference. Green European Journal, 2024. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/cop29-in-azerbaijan-a-compromised-climate-conference/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Besliu |first1=Raluca |title=COP29 in Azerbaijan: A Compromised Climate Conference |publisher=Green European Journal |date=5 November 2024 |url=https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/cop29-in-azerbaijan-a-compromised-climate-conference/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{besliu2024cop29, author = {Besliu, Raluca}, title = {{COP29 in Azerbaijan: A Compromised Climate Conference}}, publisher = {Green European Journal}, year = {2024}, month = nov, url = {https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/cop29-in-azerbaijan-a-compromised-climate-conference/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }