They bring together world leaders, country delegations, the public and journalists to reach a consensus on solving the problem of global warming.

On November 11, SOR29 will officially begin in Baku. The event will take place at a time when Russian aggression continues to destroy the environment in Ukraine, causing significant devastation and destruction. This war also has a detrimental effect on the planet's climate due to the release of significant amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Evidence of this is the large floods in Valencia, which have appeared on the front pages of the world media in recent weeks.

The Initiative for Accounting for Greenhouse Gases in War (IGGAW) estimates the total climate damage caused by the Russian Federation during the two years of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine to reach $32 billion. According to the study, the first 12 months of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine resulted in emissions of 120 million tons carbon And in two years they increased to 175 million tons. This exceeds the annual emissions of such an industrialized country as the Netherlands, exceeds the emissions from placing 90 million new gasoline cars on the road or, for example, the construction of 260 coal-fired power units with a capacity of 200 MW each.

With 2024 set to become the hottest year on record and extreme weather events becoming more frequent and intense, the decisions made by world leaders in the capital of Azerbaijan will have a significant impact on countries' efforts to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement and avoid catastrophic increases in global temperatures.

Discussions at COP29 will revolve around three main topics:

1. Volumes of climate financing

The existing target, agreed as part of the Paris Agreement in 2015, is $100 billion per year. It was first reached only in 2022, when $116 billion was allocated. Now the parties must agree on a new global financial goal for the period from 2025 to 2035

2. Keeping global warming within 1.5°C

States are working to update their national climate commitments, which are due by 2025. At COP28, it was agreed that these new commitments should keep the average global temperature within 1.5°C. Developing countries want to be sure that they will have the resources available to implement such ambitious plans. First of all, it concerns money. Funding guarantees will enable bolder climate commitments.

3. Transparency of distribution of funds

The participants of SOR29 must determine the conditions for the further operation of the Fund for reimbursement of costs and losses from climate change. The decision to create it was unanimously adopted by almost 200 countries at the first plenary meeting of the Council of Europe28 in the United Arab Emirates. This year, states will agree on tools to ensure transparency in the use of funds and support national adaptation plans. The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine previously stated that our country "has every chance of receiving additional funds for green restoration" through this Fund.

The formation of a comprehensive climate policy, which should take into account the interests of all countries in the process of achieving the goals of global reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, began almost 30 years ago, during the first COP.

"Ukrainian Energy" recalls the key decisions of UN international conferences on climate change, which laid the foundation for modern discussions.

COP1, 1995: Berlin Mandate

In 1995, the first Conference of the Parties - COP1 was held in Berlin, Germany.

The countries agreed to meet annually to solve the problem of global warming. Negotiations have begun on proposals to strengthen obligations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The Berlin Mandate laid the groundwork for future agreements, but revealed significant problems, including procedural disagreements over the decision-making rules of the FTA.

COP3, 1997: Kyoto Protocol

In 1997, the third Conference of the Parties was held in Kyoto, Japan, at which a landmark document for climate diplomacy was approved - the Kyoto Protocol. It became an important milestone in international politics, introducing legally binding emission reduction targets for industrialized countries. Although its implementation has faced difficulties because countries such as the USA and Russia have abandoned their commitments, this document has been largely implemented in practice. The main instruments established by the Kyoto Protocol - greenhouse gas emissions trading and the clean development mechanism - laid the foundation for international cooperation.

COP7, 2001: Marrakesh Accords

In 2001, the seventh Conference of the Parties - COP7 was held in Marrakesh, Morocco.

The Marrakesh Agreements finally legalized most of the instruments of the Kyoto Protocol. This became the basis for its ratification and implementation in practice.

COP13, 2007: The Bali Road Map

In 2007, the COP was held in Bali, Indonesia. During this meeting, the Bali Road Map was developed. It set a deadline for negotiations to develop a document to replace the Kyoto Protocol when it expires in 2012.

COP15, 2009: Copenhagen Accord

In 2009, the Conference of the Parties was held in Copenhagen, Denmark. Its participants failed to reach comprehensive agreements that could replace the Kyoto Protocol. But the conference reaffirmed the goal of keeping global warming below 2°C, and developed countries committed themselves to long-term financial support for developing countries.

COP16, 2010: Green Climate Fund

In 2010, the COP16 conference was held in Cancun, Mexico. It was decided to establish the Green Climate Fund. Its purpose is to support measures to combat climate change in developing countries.

COP17, 2011: Preparing a new global agreement

In 2011, the Conference of the Parties was held in Durban, South Africa.

Then all countries agreed to start reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Negotiations on a new global agreement have also started.

COP18, 2012: Doha Amendment

In 2012, the Conference of the Parties was held in Doha, Qatar. Its decisions extended the Kyoto Protocol until 2020. This narrowed the gap between the first period of commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the Paris Agreement.

SOR21, 2015: The Paris breakthrough

In 2015, COP 21 was held in Paris, France, where ground-breaking international agreements were reached.

The Paris Climate Agreement was a turning point in global climate policy. It requires all countries to commit to emissions reductions (known as "nationally determined contributions") aimed at keeping global warming well below 2°C and to make efforts to limit temperature increases to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels . The agreement was ratified by 197 countries, which proved unprecedented global cooperation in the fight against climate change.

The Paris Agreement combined binding legal elements with a flexible approach to national circumstances. Therefore, it is currently considered the most innovative and significant international agreement in the climate sphere.

SOR24, 2018: Katowice package

In 2018, the Conference of the Parties was held in Katowice, Poland. At COP24, the so-called "Katowice package" was adopted, which became the "road map" for the Paris climate agreement and made it workable thanks to procedures, guidelines and mechanisms. This made it possible to strengthen trust between countries and strengthen international cooperation to overcome one of the most difficult challenges of our time - the transition to economic development with a low level of greenhouse gas emissions and resistance to climate change.

COP26, 2021: Climate Pact

In 2021, the UN conference was held in Glasgow, Great Britain. The so-called "Climate Pact" adopted at COP26 aims to keep global warming below 1.5 °C. It includes a commitment to double funding for climate change adaptation by 2025 and calls for a phase-out of coal. In Glasgow, the countries also adopted the Global Commitment to Reduce Methane Emissions, which envisages reducing methane emissions by 30% within ten years, starting in 2020.

SOR-27, 2022: Loss and Damage Fund

In 2022, the Conference of the Parties was held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, against the background of shocking events in Ukraine related to the full-scale invasion of Russia. Therefore, the participants of the event, especially in the Ukrainian delegation, raised the issue of human rights as a necessary component of climate action.

Progress was not achieved on almost all issues at COP27. The countries did not agree on a complete abandonment of coal and ignored other types of fossil fuels - oil and natural gas. In the text of the final decision, they resorted to verbal equilibrium and reduced the importance of the goal of keeping the global temperature increase within 1.5 °C. However, it was possible to agree on the foundation of the Loss and Damage Fund. Its goal is to solve the problem of economic inequality caused by climate change, through the provision of financial assistance to vulnerable countries from the richest - developed countries.

COP28, 2023: Dubai Consensus

COP28 was held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. This conference led to drastic changes. Despite heated disputes, its final document included a condition for the gradual abandonment of fossil fuels for the first time, and it was decided to start this process with the decarbonization of energy systems. The Loss and Damage Fund for Vulnerable Countries was launched. The states also agreed to triple the installed capacities of renewable energy sources by 2030. This initiative, which was also supported by Ukraine, created the political conditions for a significant increase in financing of RES in developing countries, as well as the transformation of energy policy at the national level, so that investment decisions for "green" energy projects were viable.

COP29, 2024: Climate Finance

This year's Conference of the Parties in Baku was called "Finance COP", which emphasizes its central theme - the agreement of a global goal for financing climate projects, which should replace the previously agreed annual amount of $100 billion.

The so-called New Collective Quantitative Goal (NCQG) for climate finance for 2025-2035 aims to scale up: the annual amount of support that developing countries will have access to is tentatively estimated at $1 trillion.

Observers see the COP in Azerbaijan as an important step on the way to more ambitious action to combat climate change. But this path will be determined not only by financial incentives or the introduction of carbon crediting mechanisms, which the market is counting on most of all. Of particular importance in climate policy are practices that will ensure transparency in the use of funds and control over how the government and business will comply with their obligations to reduce carbon emissions and adapt communities to the consequences of the climate crisis.

Author: Svitlana Dolinchuk, specially for "Ukrainian Energy"