President Isaac Herzog’s office announced on Saturday that he was canceling his planned visit to the UN’s COP29 climate conference, which is being held in Baku, Azerbaijan.
His office cited “security considerations” that followed a situational assessment as the reason behind the cancellation.
Three ministers representing the environmental protection, energy, and transportation ministries and dozens of officials are still attending the conference, which kicked off on November 11.
Israel’s delegation is taking place under tight security, given the country’s proximity to Iran, though Azerbaijan itself is seen as an ally of Israel.
As in the past two COP events, Israel has a pavilion, as it did last year, and will include a corner focusing on Israeli hostages held by the Hamas terror group in Gaza.
Israeli figures are also taking part in events outside the pavilion. For example, Rabbi Yonatan Neril, founder and director of the Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development, will participate in several interfaith sessions at the Faith Pavilion.
Anti-Israel protesters have demonstrated against Israel’s participation during the event. Activists staged a protest last week as the event began.
Anti-Israel activists protest at the COP29 UN Climate Summit, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024, in Baku, Azerbaijan. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
The pavilion is showcasing 20 climate startups (out of 80 that applied), with 10 exhibiting each week with the support of the Israel Export Institute. Dozens of events are planned at the pavilion, emphasizing the importance of regional and international cooperation.
Foreign Ministry climate envoy Gideon Behar told The Times of Israel, “We attribute great importance to our participation at COP. We cannot [give the impression] that the war has closed us off. We are part of the international community; we have a voice, can influence, want to contribute to the global battle on climate change, and have solutions and technology to offer.”
This year’s COP is focused on increasing the contributions of developed nations to developing nations. The former are primarily responsible for causing global warming by burning fossil fuels. The latter may bear the brunt of the effects of climate change, such as rising sea levels, drought, floods, and increasingly devastating storms.
A sign for COP29, the United Nations Climate Change Conference, goes on display in Baku, Azerbaijan, September 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
After pledging in 2009 to provide $100 billion annually to the developing world by 2020, Western nations reached this goal only in 2022. The developing world says this is insufficient and that nations that have become developed since they were categorized as developing should start stepping up to the plate and help to double the $100 billion.
The second main issue will be finalizing the rules for Article 6 of the 2015 Paris climate agreement. This will allow countries with reduced global warming emissions to earn money by selling carbon credits to help other countries balance their emissions.
Israeli government figures, among them Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman (3rd left) and Foreign Office Climate Envoy Gideon Behar (3rd right) pose after cutting a ribbon to open the Israel Pavilion at the UN climate conference, COP29, in Baku, Azerbaijan, November 13, 2024. (Sue Surkes/Times of Israel)
Due to Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza and Lebanon, a UAE-brokered deal signed three years ago to have Jordan provide solar energy to Israel and Israel channel desalinated water to the Hashemite Kingdom is frozen. A renewed memorandum of understanding between the parties was signed two years ago at COP27 in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh.
Under the radar, meetings on the climate crisis have continued in Cyprus, with a recent confab attracting representatives from Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, and the Gulf, in addition to Greece and the European Union.
