(Bloomberg) -- German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will no longer attend the COP29 climate summit as he grapples with a political crisis at home, adding to a European leadership vacuum at this year’s talks.
Scholz was due to attend the leaders summit at the start of the United Nations climate negotiations in Baku, Azerbaijan next week. But he cancelled that plan to help deal with the aftermath of his call for a snap election, according to a person familiar with the matter.
He is the latest in a series of European Union leaders who are skipping the conference. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen won’t attend as she focuses on transitioning to her second term, a spokesperson has said. French President Emmanuel Macron will also be absent, according to a list of speakers.
The decision by top EU leaders to sit out COP29 comes as the world looks to the bloc for greater climate leadership following the re-election of Donald Trump, who pulled the US out of the Paris Agreement in his first term and wants to do so again. The annual COP summits are a forum for countries to hash out strategies to meet the commitment they made in Paris to keep global warming in check.
EU Council President Charles Michel will represent the bloc during the high-level segment, according to his spokesperson. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is set to be one of the highest profile attendees from the EU after devastating floods hit Valencia last week. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will also travel to Baku. Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman is listed as speaking on Nov. 12.
Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva won’t attend, even as his country prepares to host next year’s COP30. International Monetary Fund chief Kristalina Georgieva will miss the climate meeting for first time in four years, despite the organization’s focus on shoring up money to help poorer countries adapt to climate change. The key objective of COP29 is to come up with a new global finance goal, to which the EU is expected to contribute a large portion.
--With assistance from Jorge Valero.
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