Here at the COP29 climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, divisions remain deep as a draft of a climate finance deal was met with overwhelming disapproval. Among the major issues is the absence of a firm number in the draft text. Poorer nations bearing the brunt of the climate crisis say at least $1.3 trillion a year is needed. We’ll have the latest later in the broadcast.
On Wednesday, delegates from Ukraine and Palestine shared the devastating impact of war on the climate. Ukraine’s Environment Minister Svitlana Grynchuk says Russia’s invasion has come at a cost of $71 billion in environmental destruction.
Svitlana Grynchuk: “The war already impacted 3 million hectares of Ukrainian forests due to the ongoing forest fires caused by Russian military actions. The greenhouse gas absorption potential of Ukrainian forest has decreased by 1.7 million tons of CO2. Nature knows no borders, so it will have negative impact on the neighbor countries and on food supply chain around the world.”