Key points
- Albanese, Erdogan to hold talks
- UN urges quick resolution on summit
- Australia aims to host in Adelaide
ISLAMABAD: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is set to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan later this month as Australia ramps up its efforts to resolve the impasse over who will host next year’s global climate summit.
Australia and Türkiye have been embroiled in a prolonged dispute regarding the right to host the COP31 summit in 2026.
The major event, formally titled the “31st Conference of the Parties”, is expected to attract more than 20,000 delegates. It is due to be held by a member of the United Nations regional group known as “Western Europe and Others States”, which includes 28 countries such as Australia, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany.
According to the Australian government, 23 out of the 28 countries in the group support its proposal to co-host the summit alongside Pacific Island nations.
Hosting rights
However, Türkiye has thus far declined to withdraw its bid.
Mr Albanese will meet with Mr Erdogan on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, which begins in just over two weeks, reports ABC News.
The purpose of the meeting is to try and settle the disagreement over hosting rights.
In July, UN climate chief Simon Stiell urged Australia and Türkiye to resolve the matter “very quickly”.
“The delay in making that decision is unhelpful to the process,” he said at a clean energy event in Sydney.
Supplier of green metals
Australia is aiming to host the summit in Adelaide in November 2026 and hopes to use the occasion to highlight its clean energy transformation and ambitions as a supplier of green metals and green hydrogen.
Before the Prime Minister travels to the UN General Assembly, the federal government is expected to unveil its 2035 emissions target.
The revised target will be informed by recommendations from the Climate Change Authority, which has been consulting on a potential aim to cut emissions by between 65 and 75 per cent below 2005 levels.
