Sawt Falasteen - Turkey seeks to host next COP as co-presidency plans falter

Australia and Turkey are locked in a stalemate over who should host the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) in 2026.

The host is selected by consensus, so unless Australia or Turkey withdraws its bid or the countries somehow agree to share the duty, both will miss out.

If no consensus is reached, the summit would revert to Bonn, the western German city that hosts the UN's climate secretariat.

The Turkish source said discussions with Australia on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly's annual meetings initially yielded mutual understanding, including proposals for joint management of the presidency and shared high-level meetings.

But a letter from Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan rejected prior agreements, citing UN rules against co-presidency and concerns about diverting COP's Pacific-focused agenda, the source said.

Ankara supports developing flexible arrangements through good-faith consultations to help ensure the success of COP31, they said.

"Turkey continues to advocate a co-presidency model as a step to strengthen multilateralism but is prepared to host the conference independently if consensus cannot be reached," the source told AFP, adding that Erdogan underlined this position in his response to the Australian prime minister.

-'Inclusiveness'-

World leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer attended a summit on November 6 and 7 to kick off COP30, but Erdogan and Albanese were not among them.

Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz attended the summit, while Australia was represented by Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen at the conference.

Brazil has appointed a representative to help resolve the disagreements between Australia and Turkey, but diplomats say that so far, no progress has been made toward reaching an agreement before the summit wraps up on November 21.

Some observers view Turkey's close ties with Russia and Saudi Arabia -- countries seen as hindering progress on climate action -- as a potential disadvantage.

Turkey wants COP31 to focus on the world's most vulnerable regions, with potential special sessions addressing Pacific issues, the same source added.

The Turkish candidacy is framed as a call for global solidarity and constructive dialogue in climate action.

"Turkey will continue to act on the principles of cooperation and inclusiveness rather than competition in combating climate change," the source said, adding that it invites all parties to advance the process on the basis of "constructive dialogue and mutual respect".

P.AbuBaker--SF-PST