COP29 success requires G20 ‘leadership’: UN chief

UN General-Secretary Antonio Guterres speaks during a press conference, ahead of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil November 17, 2024. (Reuters)
Short Url
Updated 17 November 2024
Follow

COP29 success requires G20 ‘leadership’: UN chief

  • Annual UN climate talks in Baku deadlocked at midway point

RIO DE JANEIRO: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday called on G20 leaders gathering in Rio de Janeiro to rescue stalled concurrent UN climate talks in Azerbaijan by showing “leadership” on cutting emissions.
“A successful outcome at COP29 is still within reach, but it will require leadership and compromise, namely from the G20 countries,” Guterres, who will attend the summit of the world’s biggest economies starting Monday, told a press conference in Rio.
The annual UN talks in Baku are deadlocked at the midway point, with nations no closer to agreeing a $1 trillion deal for climate investments in developing nations after a week of negotiations.
The talks are stuck over the final figure, the type of financing, and who should pay, with Western countries wanting China and wealthy Gulf states to join the list of donors.
All eyes have turned to Rio in the hope of a breakthrough.
“The spotlight is naturally on the G20. They account for 80 percent of global emissions,” Guterres said, calling on the group to “lead by example.”


Eighteen die after migrant boat sinks off southern Greek island

Updated 3 sec ago
Follow

Eighteen die after migrant boat sinks off southern Greek island

  • The boat was initially detected by a Turkish cargo ship
  • The survivors were being taken to the island of Crete

ATHENS: Eighteen migrants drowned when their boat overturned 26 miles (40 km) south of the tiny southern Greek island of Chrysi, a coast guard official said on Saturday, while two were rescued from the sea.
The boat was initially detected by a Turkish cargo ship, which contacted the Greek authorities.
The survivors were being taken to the island of Crete, the official added.
Greece was on the front line of a 2015-16 migration crisis when more than a million people from the Middle East and Africa crossed into Europe.
Flows have ebbed since then but the last year has seen a steep rise in migrant boats, mainly from Libya, heading for Crete, Gavdos and Chrysi — the three Aegean islands nearest to the African coast. Fatal accidents remain common.