As COP29 concludes, lead negotiator Yalchin Rafiyev reflects on its outcomes and legacy. In an exclusive interview with AnewZ, he discusses the next steps in global climate action and shares a message for Brazil, the host of the 2025 UN Climate Change Conference.
The COP29 summit ended last weekend with an agreement that nations will raise three hundred billion dollars towards vulnerable countries affected by climate change. Azerbaijan's lead negotiator Yalchin Rafiyev says it is now important for Baku to keep up the momentum.
"We have just started our presidency. It means for the next one year period, we will work hard to continue our presidency, to come up with new ideas, to help the Brazilian presidency build their own outcomes, a package. Also, as part of Troika, we will need to work closely with UAE and Brazil. But also, in terms of strategic importance for Azerbaijan, we need to keep... We maintain the legacy of Baku, we need to strengthen it, we need to promote it, because Baku was one of the historical COPs, ever. Because of its outcomes, because of the level of attendance, because of many important pledges and promises made by certain countries, and because of many innovations. And we need to keep, in the next few years at least, this legacy to be strengthened, maintained, and then further build upon it by having contributed to the global climate action, including the negotiations," Rafiyev stated.
As COP29 concluded, some countries, including India, Bolivia, and Cuba, voiced concerns over the outcome. Rafiyev explains the different positions these countries took and what steps will be needed to continue dialogue and collaboration moving forward.
"India was, of course, trying to block the whole decision, but they came to us, asked for a floor in the statement, but did not mention when. If it is before the adoption or after. And we, after the adoption, we gave them a floor and they expressed their view. When it comes to Bolivia, Bolivia was not against the decision, was not blocking it, just expressed solidarity with India. Those positions that the figure is low, that the developed countries should do more, and Cuba as well. So their dissatisfaction was not about the decision, but about the approach by the developed countries,"- he said.
Looking ahead to next year's UN Climate Change Conference at the port city of Belém, Rafiyev has a key message for the upcoming Brazilian presidency.
"Do not bring the political, geopolitical divides into the negotiations, I would say, into the negotiations process. Because if you bring these geopolitical divides, you end up in a situation where even though this is something that affects humanity, you cannot act impartially. Like those issues that you have been experiencing in other parts, in other areas of geopolitics, you have been observing also here,"- shared Rafiyev with AnewZ.
The UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) held in Baku from November 11 to 23 and led to significant progress in the fight against climate change.
President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan held talks with Li Qiang, Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, in Beijing on Tuesday, furthering the countries' comprehensive strategic partnership.
Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan are close to finalizing their border agreement, with only technical issues remaining. The deal aims to resolve long-standing disputes over roads, water resources, and territorial claims.
The COP29 UN Climate Change Conference, held in Baku concluded with a landmark agreement to increase public climate finance for developing countries to $300 billion annually by 2035
“Azerbaijan has created a platform, and we are a bridge between the parties. And now it's up to all of us together to make that happen,” UN High-Level Climate Champion, Nigar Arpadarai, tells AnewZ in an exclusive interview ahead of COP29 in Baku.
President Donald Trump announced that he will increase steel tariffs from 25% to 50%, a move that could push up costs for industries relying on steel, including housing and auto manufacturing.
U.S. stocks wrapped up the week with a mixed finish after President Donald Trump accused China of breaking a recent trade agreement, reigniting global market jitters just weeks after a deal was struck in Geneva.
Canada is facing a growing wildfire crisis, with 175 active blazes across the country—95 of them uncontained—prompting evacuations, military support, and state of emergency declarations.
The US has urged Australia to boost its defense spending as Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles confirmed that nuclear submarine development is progressing well.
On Friday, Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy held a phone call to discuss efforts to end the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, according to diplomatic sources.
AnewZ takes to the streets of Yerevan and Baku to ask a simple yet deeply complex question: How do you see peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan? In the first part of our special report, we hear the hopes, doubts, and scars still shaping people’s perspectives on both sides.
A car drove into crowds of Liverpool fans celebrating the club’s Premier League title in the city centre on Monday evening, injuring dozens including 4 children. A 53-year-old man believed to be the driver was arrested at the scene.
EU ministers have greenlit a massive €150 billion defense investment fund—dubbed the Security Action for Europe (SAFE)—as the bloc ramps up its military readiness in response to Russia’s aggression and growing uncertainty over U.S. security guarantees.
Kyiv faced a large-scale Russian drone and missile assault overnight, with explosions and gunfire echoing throughout the city, forcing residents to shelter in subway stations.
A massive landslide in southern Switzerland this week buried the village of Blatten and blocked a river, creating a growing risk of flooding. Millions of cubic meters of ice, mud, and rock crashed down from a mountain on Wednesday, flooding the few buildings left in the village.
The Green Climate Fund (GCF)-backed project, “Strengthening Climate Resilience of Vulnerable Agricultural Livelihoods in Southern Iraq” (SRVALI), was officially launched on the sidelines of the 5th Baghdad International Water Conference.
A staggering 4 billion people—half of the world’s population—experienced at least 30 additional days of extreme heat over the past year due to human-induced climate change, a new international study revealed Friday.
The next five years are likely to be the warmest in recorded history, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), as rising global temperatures push the planet closer to surpassing key climate thresholds with wide-ranging consequences.
A seabird chick found with 778 plastic pieces inside its body on a remote island between Australia and New Zealand has become a powerful symbol of the global plastic pollution crisis. Scientists say the plastic has caused chronic illness and cognitive decline in the bird, raising urgent concerns abo
President Donald Trump announced that he will increase steel tariffs from 25% to 50%, a move that could push up costs for industries relying on steel, including housing and auto manufacturing.
U.S. stocks wrapped up the week with a mixed finish after President Donald Trump accused China of breaking a recent trade agreement, reigniting global market jitters just weeks after a deal was struck in Geneva.
Canada is facing a growing wildfire crisis, with 175 active blazes across the country—95 of them uncontained—prompting evacuations, military support, and state of emergency declarations.
The US has urged Australia to boost its defense spending as Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles confirmed that nuclear submarine development is progressing well.
On Friday, Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy held a phone call to discuss efforts to end the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, according to diplomatic sources.
Download the AnewZ app
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.