Former COP presidents back Türkiye’s COP31 presidency as Kurum launches BRIDGE

Former presidents of the Conferences of the Parties from COP21 to COP30 announced their support for Türkiye’s COP31 presidency in a joint statement in Antalya, while conference president Murat Kurum unveiled an initiative to help countries access climate finance.

Former presidents of the United Nations climate conferences, from the Paris COP21 to the Belem COP30, issued a joint statement in Antalya expressing their support for Türkiye’s COP31 presidency and Australia’s presidency of the negotiations. Laurent Fabius, Alok Sharma, Michal Kurtyka and André Aranha Corrêa do Lago attended the meeting.

Conference president and Turkish Environment Minister Murat Kurum said the joint statement was “extremely important,” adding that the path from Paris to Antalya had been shaped by the shared will of the international community. He said the goal in Antalya was to achieve outcomes that would accelerate climate action.

Turkish Environment Minister Murat Kurum speaks at a meeting of COP presidents

BRIDGE initiative for developing countries

Kurum said Türkiye had developed the Climate Action Implementation Bridge initiative, known as BRIDGE, with the United Nations Development Programme to help countries turn their climate priorities into investment-ready projects and facilitate their access to finance. He urged countries that have not yet submitted their 2035 national climate plans to do so as soon as possible.

Fabius, for his part, said the statement underscored the importance of continuity between conferences. He noted that the steps taken so far remained far from sufficient, adding that electrification, methane emissions reductions, oceans and climate finance should be among the conference’s priorities.

Photos: COP31 Türkiye