Tough COP start: Why the agenda dispute • Table.Briefings

Sultan Al Jaber hands over the gavel to this year’s COP President Mukhtar Babayev.

Right at the start of the conference, the delegation gets caught up in a dispute over the details of the agenda. On the surface, it is about trade barriers and the question of how finances and CO2 reduction should be negotiated. But below the surface, this is also a showdown.

The COP29 negotiations in Baku got underway on Monday after a 9-hour delay and a tough battle over the agenda. After the delegations had been working on compromises until the early hours of the morning the night before the start, the opening plenary adjourned immediately after the welcoming addresses by COP President Mukhtar Babayev and UNFCCC Secretary-General Simon Stiell. After hours of interruption, the agenda was finally adopted shortly after 8 p.m. in Baku, and work on the actual substance of the conference could begin. There was also a partial agreement on market mechanisms under Article 6.4 of the Paris Climate Agreement.

Tough COP start: Why the agenda dispute became a test of strength

Sign up now and continue reading immediately