The climate summit in Baku (COP29) began on Monday with pressure from the Global South to strengthen financing commitments and uncertainty about the climate ambition of the United States following Donald Trump's election, as well as the notable absence of US President Joe Biden. Over the next two weeks, the Azerbaijani capital will host climate negotiations where nearly 200 countries are expected to agree on a new collective and quantified financing goal to fund climate action, a matter of great importance for developing countries.
Among the world leaders expected to attend the summit in Baku this Tuesday is the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, although this year the absences of Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Emmanuel Macron, Olaf Scholz, Ursula von der Leyen, and Gustavo Petro, who canceled his visit due to flooding in his country, are notable.
Trump's election in the United States raised doubts about the country's climate ambition, having executed the exit from the Paris Agreement during his term. John Podesta, Biden's chief climate advisor, expressed confidence that the transition to clean energy will prevail. By 2025, countries must update their plans to reduce emissions in order to meet the goal of not exceeding a global warming of 1.5 ºC compared to pre-industrial times.
