International media: Using COP to promote the use of fossil fuels is provocative and disrespectful

The president of COP29’s host country has told the UN climate conference that oil and gas are a “gift of God.” Some observers had expressed concerns about the world’s largest climate conference taking place in Azerbaijan, the BBC writes.

As noted, its minister for ecology and natural resources-a former oil executive that spent 26 years at Azerbaijan’s state-owned oil and gas company Socar–is the conference’s chairman.

There are also concerns that Azerbaijani officials are using COP29 to boost investment in the country’s national oil and gas company.

The article says COP29 is scheduled to last until Nov. 22, but there are already fears that the tricky issues on the table could make a final agreement very difficult.

Reuters, in turn, noted that Aliyev’s speech did not bode well for a strong result from the two-week summit.

“Using a climate conference to promote the continued production and use of fossil fuels is … provocative, and deeply disrespectful to the countries on the frontline of climate impacts,” Romain Ioualalen, global policy lead at campaign group Oil Change International, said.