Key events
One big piece of news came out of Belem last night: Türkiye will host Cop31 next year, with Australia leading the actual negotiations in an agreement designed to end the unprecedented standoff between potential host nations.
The unusual arrangement, negotiated overnight and expected to be officially announced today, will see the event take place in Antalya, the 2,000-year-old Mediterranean city that has become the country's tourism capital. Türkiye will manage the event while Australia will preside over diplomatic wrangling to stop the warming of the planet and protect people from the destruction of a stable climate.
Importantly, resolving the differences could still leave room for vulnerable Pacific island states, which were part of Australia's bid to host the summit, to play a significant role. Australia's Climate Minister Chris Bowen told reporters last night the agreement could include an event on the Pacific island ahead of the summit that would release money for a Pacific resilience fund.
Brazilian President Lula speaks at a conference
Damien Gale
On Wednesday evening I joined a crowd of journalists, including my colleague Fiona Harvey, a veteran police officer, who waited outside the plenary hall in a faux Baltic setting KS30 conference center
There were rumors that Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who had earlier arrived at the UN climate summit, would soon appear to talk to reporters. What exactly we would do if he did appear was unclear.
There was no guarantee that we, of the several hundred journalists who had gathered to look at Lula, would even get close. And even if we did, none of us spoke enough Portuguese to ask him questions about the intricacies of international climate policy.
But then, without warning, some members of the press to our right began to move away, moving back down the huge gray tented corridors snaking through the center. The others nervously avoided answering and then began to follow, first walking, then jogging, then sprinting, hooting and shouting.
“News stampede!” – Fiona shouted. “Damien, run!” I did as I was told, chasing my press corps colleagues, dodging tripod legs raised at face level, trampling those too weak or slow to get out of my way, determined but unsure of where we were going or where this race would end.
Finally, a new crowd began to form outside the convention center's VVIP Lounge. I joined them, making my way as close as possible to the front, where exhausted-looking UN guards were fighting to hold back the jostling crowd of journalists.
And as I stood there, staring at the closed whitewashed door, shoulders squared to prevent overeager rivals from trying to pass me by, I slowly began to realize that I had no idea what was going on.
To sum up my experience of the Cop30 negotiations, this was it. Although I have been following – and covering – the work of the COP from London for several years, the Belém climate summit was my first personal experience of participating in international climate negotiations. And I don't think admitting that these conversations are confusing is a threat to my journalistic courage.
Multiple avenues of negotiation, all couched in confusing acronyms and insider jargon; texts and draft texts; heaps, fights and rapids; and thousands of people whose role is completely unclear, but is undoubtedly also vital to the future of the planet.
Police participants who spoke to the Guardian agreed that this UN climate summit is more challenging than in recent years. Usually at this late stage of the negotiations the negotiations were reduced to a totemic issue that was considered final. In fact, that's partly why Lula was there, to try to break some people's heads: ministerial summits, trying to get some decisions made. Brazil had hoped to receive the package by the end of Wednesday evening. This deadline has passed, but the text has not appeared; now the owners promise it on Thursday.
Before heading out again, Lula told reporters that the proposal for a road map to ending oil use did not involve “imposing anything on anyone” or “setting a time frame for countries to stop burning fossil fuels,” the main cause of greenhouse gas emissions responsible for global warming.
“We need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. And if fossil fuels are the thing that causes a lot of emissions, we need to start thinking about how to live without fossil fuels and build a way to live.” [without it]”
“I am so glad that I leave here with confidence that my negotiators will achieve the best result that the policeman could ever offer to planet Earth,” the Brazilian president said. He believes that the best deal can be concluded through negotiations, “because in the Constitutional Court we do not impose anything, everything must be consensus, there must be a lot of conversations. And we respect the political, ideological, territorial and cultural sovereignty of each country. We do not want to impose anything, we just want to say that it is possible.”
However, his words are a little optimistic. Differences remain on key issues, particularly over climate finance, unilateral trade measures, progress on emissions reduction plans and the central question of whether countries will agree to develop a roadmap outlining how the world will transition away from fossil fuels.
That means a lot of mind-blowing work ahead and many more nights in the police media center. As Fiona likes to remind me, “Policing is a marathon, not a sprint.”
Good afternoon, this is Ajith Niranjan joining you from Berlin as we enter the final days of the 30th United Nations Climate Summit. My US colleague Gabrielle Canon will take over later today to bring you the latest news.
