The Hindustan Times: Leaders of India, China, US and France are expected to miss COP29 in Azerbaijan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi may skip the United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP29, to be held in Azerbaijan next month because of scheduling issues, The Hindustan Times writes.

The development rules out the possibility of a meeting between the Indian leader and his Pakistani counterpart Shehbaz Sharif, something that Islamabad was keen on following external affairs minister S Jaishankar’s recent visit to the neighbouring country for a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meet.

Following Jaishankar’s visit to Islamabad, the Pakistani side had shown interest in a meeting between Modi and Sharif to take forward efforts to try and bring bilateral relations, currently at an all-time low, back to an even keel, the sources said.

India’s delegation is expected to be led by environment and climate change minister Bhupender Yadav.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, U.S. President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron are also among the leaders expected to give COP29 a miss.

Israeli Prime Benjamin Netanyahu, too, has not confirmed his participation.