BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 4. Azerbaijan has announced joining the Global Methane Pledge initiative, an important voluntary commitment by nation states to reduce their emissions of methane, Trend reports.
Within the framework of this initiative, Azerbaijan is ready to join joint international efforts aimed at reducing global methane emissions by at least 30 percent by 2030.
The Global Methane Pledge is an initiative put forward by the United States and the European Union (EU) at the COP26 Climate Change Conference in Glasgow in 2021. It aims to reduce overall methane emissions by 30 percent by 2030, compared to 2020 levels. Currently, 155 countries accounting for nearly half of global methane emissions have signed up.
Azerbaijan ratified the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in 1995 and the Kyoto Protocol of the convention in 2000, joining international efforts to mitigate the negative impacts of global climate change. Under its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), Azerbaijan originally targeted a 35% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, compared to 1990 levels, as part of its efforts to mitigate the effects of global climate change. In its latest NDC, updated in 2023, Azerbaijan committed to a 40 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. It also announced the transformation of the Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur economic regions into a decarbonization zone, with a 2050 target.
The joining of Azerbaijan, which takes an active position in the fight against climate change, to the Global Methane Commitment initiative will further strengthen its position in the world as a reliable partner in the field of "green" energy. The State of Azerbaijan, as a responsible member of the international community, always provides substantial support to the interaction of States in connection with global climate policy and encourages efforts aimed at achieving green goals. Thanks to its commitment to its obligations, successful activities within the framework of the ‘Green World Solidarity’ initiative announced by the President of Azerbaijan, and new initiatives, Azerbaijan is recognized worldwide as a country that makes a great contribution to global climate policy. The fact that the country is also entrusted to host the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) is an obvious manifestation of the international assessment of this activity and the confidence placed in it.
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