Turkey, Australia’s joint COP31 leadership raises doubts

Australia and Turkey have jointly assumed leadership of COP31, set to take place in Antalya, Turkey, from November 9. The unusual partnership has raised concerns about the summit's governance and decision-making process. Both nations had vied for the honor of hosting the event, but ultimately reached a compromise in which Turkey would host the summit while Australia would oversee formal negotiations.

This duality of leadership has never before been seen at the United Nations' climate summits and its efficacy remains uncertain. Anna Perez Catala, a policy analyst from IDDRI, a Paris-based think tank, stated that the model aims to demonstrate that countries can collaborate even in challenging circumstances, but could also lead to disagreements.

With the climate summits rotating between regional blocs, the host nation is typically chosen by consensus among the relevant group's members. Australia and Turkey both argued that their selection would foster unity between developed and developing nations, citing Turkey's ability to accommodate industrialized and developing countries and the availability of affordable accommodations in Antalya.

The compromise led to the appointment of Turkey's Murat Kurum as the COP31 President and Australia's Climate Minister Chris Bowen as the President of Negotiations. While they claim to be working in harmony, questions remain over the practical implications of this arrangement, particularly as the summit approaches during a period of heightened energy security concerns, waning trust in multilateral institutions, and ongoing divisions over climate action.