COP29 Paints a Greenwashed Picture of Authoritarian Azerbaijan: Greta Thunberg

The 29th Conference of Parties (COP29) has begun Monday in “another authoritarian petrostate” Azerbaijan which has “no respect for human rights”. Azerbaijan’s entire economy is built on fossil fuels, said Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg in an article in The Guardian. 

State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) exports accounts for nearly 90 per cent of the country’s exports. Moreover, it is planning to increase the production of fossil fuel. “Despite what it might claim, Azerbaijan has no ambition to take climate action. It is planning to expand fossil fuel production, which is completely incompatible with the 1.5C limit and the goals of the Paris agreement on climate change,” she said. 

Thunberg also called out the country for "ethnic cleansing", "humanitarian blockades" and "war crimes". Following decades of ceasefires with sporadic clashes and upsurges of violence in Nagorno-Karabakh—a region internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but populated mainly by Armenian Christians—Azerbaijan launched a large-scale military offensive against the region in September 2023, forcing over 90,000 of the estimated population of 120,000 to flee their homes.

Also Read: COP29 Host Azerbaijan Criticised For Weak Climate Targets And Increasing Emissions

Country Known for Stifling Dissent

The country is ranked as the least democratic state in Europe, with the regime targeting journalists, independent media outlets, political and civic activists and human rights defenders, according to an independent watchdog Freedom House. 

A human rights defender Anar Mammadli has been in pre-trial detention since April 2024 on fake charges. An economist and political activist Gubad Ibadoghlu was moved to house arrest in April this year after 274 days of detention. Opposition leader Tofig Yagublu has been in pre-trail detention since December 2023 on spurious forgery charges. 

The young activist said in the article that the picture of Azerbaijan, during the ongoing summit, reported by the media will be a “whitewashed” and “greenwashed” version that the regime is “desperate” to portray. “But make no mistake–it is a repressive state accused of ethnic cleansing,” she added.

COP29 started on November 11 will continue till November 22. Dubbed as the "finance COP", COP29 will focus on increasing the global climate finance targets for aiding the Global South in its green transition. As discussions enter their second day, it remains to be seen whether any breakthrough decisions emerge.