“Today’s informal meeting of heads of delegations from countries party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Shamakhi gives us a space to reflect, recharge, and re-focus for the road to the COP30,” said Mukhtar Babayev, Representative of the President of Azerbaijan on Climate Issues, as he addressed an informal meeting of heads of delegations from countries party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Shamakhi, Azerbaijan.

“This time last year, we were working intensely in preparation for Baku. And today, we gather not just to revisit what was accomplished, but to deliberate on the elements stemming from COP29 and sharpen our collective focus toward Belém and beyond,” Mukhtar Babayev noted.

“And it came at a time of great uncertainty — geopolitical instability, economic pressures, climate disasters, and increasing skepticism toward multilateralism. Yet, together, we rose to the challenge. We finalized the New Collective Quantified Goal. We launched the Baku Finance Goal, which tripled the previous goal with a pledge to mobilize at least 300 billion dollars per year to the developing world by 2035. And countries tasked the Azerbaijani and Brazilian COP Presidencies to set out the Baku to Belém Roadmap for how we could reach 1.3 trillion dollars a year by 2035. Today, you will have the space to deliberate on this matter, particularly on how to shape the Roadmap with the elements you consider necessary.”

“What we achieved in Baku was not the finish line — it was a starting point. And today, Shamakhi gives us a space to reflect, recharge, and re-focus for the road ahead,” he said.

The Representative of the Azerbaijani President highlighted several immediate priorities for the COP29 Presidency:

“First, we must continue to support the Brazilian Presidency in shaping a COP that is ambitious, inclusive, and focused on delivery. As the COP29 Presidency, we remain actively engaged on all key fronts, from finance and NDCs to resilience and transparency.

Second, we will continue to champion the Baku-to-Belém Roadmap. Our aim is to provide a clear and practical path toward achieving the $1.3 trillion goal, in full partnership with the COP30 Presidency and other stakeholders.

Third, we must work to hold ourselves accountable. Commitments made in Baku on adaptation, on multilateral funds, and on loss and damage must not be forgotten. The credibility of this process depends on it. Shamakhi is not just a beautiful place — it is also a symbol. It is the symbol of our shared belief that diplomacy still works and that multilateralism, when rooted in trust and cooperation, can deliver real results.”

“We should be grateful to our colleagues from the negotiation teams led by Mr. Yalchin Rafiyev and to the UNFCCC Secretariat for their enduring support. Our recent engagements in Bonn and Seville reaffirmed the importance of such open exchanges in strengthening trust and driving collective progress,” Babayev emphasized.

“Our role as the COP29 Presidency is now one of continuity and accountability. We remain committed to:

Holding donors to their pledges, including promises on adaptation, UNFCCC funds, and climate-vulnerable countries;

Supporting Brazil in delivering a successful COP30;

Elevating the outcomes of the Baku process to inform robust NDC submissions and inspire political leadership,” he concluded.

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