by Fiona Harvey at theguardian.com
The host country of this year’s UN climate summit, Azerbaijan, has been accused of hypocrisy in calling for a global truce to coincide with the conference taking place.
Azerbaijan holds the presidency of the Cop29 summit, which will take place in its capital, Baku, from 11 November for two weeks. Heads of government from around the world are expected and more than 180 countries are likely to be represented.
For the duration of the conference, and a week before and afterwards, Azerbaijan is calling on all countries that are engaged in conflict to put down arms. The presidency will also hold a special “peace day” on 15 November, and a Cop29 peace and climate initiative, intended to help the most vulnerable countries, in conjunction with the UK, Germany, Italy, Uganda and others.
The conflicts involving Ukraine and Russia, and Israel and Gaza – both in regions neighbouring Azerbaijan – will cast a shadow over the conference. Russia is a leading producer of fossil fuels and emitter of greenhouse gases, while Azerbaijan is helping to supply gas to Europe in place of Russia’s gas. Forging diplomatic agreement on the climate is expected to be even more fraught than usual, when geopolitical tensions are already running high.
A leaked draft of the truce appeal, seen by the Guardian, shows Azerbaijan is positioning itself as a peacemaker. “[Cop29] is a unique chance to bridge divides and find paths towards lasting peace. Conflicts increase greenhouse gas emissions and ravage the environment, polluting soil, water and air. The devastation of ecosystems and pollution caused by conflicts worsen climate change and undermine our efforts to safeguard the planet,” reads the draft resolution, a short text of 180 words.
But activists have pointed to Azerbaijan’s record on human rights and its recently concluded war with Armenia. More than 100,000 people were displaced in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region after Azerbaijan launched an offensive last September.
A peace agreement was reached in late December but human rights campaigners say Azerbaijan still holds hundreds of political prisoners.
Several accused the Cop host country of hypocrisy. Paul Polman, a former chief of Unilever and now a climate activist and peace campaigner, said: “The idea of a ‘Cop truce’ is a deeply cynical PR stunt by Azerbaijan designed to distract the world’s attention away from its ethnic cleansing of Nagorno-Karabakh last year.