Iranian expert: Hosting COP29 in Baku is a bitter irony in terms of  international environmental standards

ArmInfo. Holding COP29 in Baku is a bitter irony in terms of international environmental standards.  This is stated in the article by the famous Iranian expert on the Caucasus Ahmad Kazemi entitled "Why Baku is an unfit host for COP29".  

In his article, he noted that given Azerbaijan's continued violations  of international norms and rights and negative behavior in the field  of environmental protection, holding the United Nations Climate  Change Conference (COP 29) in this country from November 11 to 22 is  unacceptable.

The expert emphasized that the Climate Conference are usually hosted  by countries that have a major role and serious progress in  environmental protection. In this regard, Kazemi highlighted the fact  that the main polluter of the Caspian Sea is Azerbaijan. "As a result  of Baku's oil extraction activities, the marine flora and fauna of  the Caspian Sea are under threat, and oil pollution reaches Iran's  shores," Kazemi added.

Citing Azerbaijani media, he stated that decades ago, Azerbaijan  disposed of nuclear waste transported from Ukraine to Azerbaijan by  dumping it into the Caspian Sea, receiving $260,000 for each  container.  "Due to absence investment in sewage infrastructure,  millions of tons of untreated urban, household, and industrial waste  are dumped into the Caspian Sea every year from the densely populated  cities of Baku and Sumgait, threatening the ecosystem of this closed  sea. The untreated waste is discharged from Nakhichevan into the  Araks River," Kazemi continued.

Additionally, the expert pointed out that Baku's stated concerns  about environmental protection are formal and for show. He explained  that Baku's worry over the declining water level of the Caspian Sea  level is driven solely by the negative impact it has on oil  production. Kazemi also touched upon the environmental issues of the  village of Soyudlu in Azerbaijan and the government's pressure on  villagers who raised concerns about these problems. "Annual  conferences are not only about "environmental protection" but also  about "human rights", while Azerbaijan violates both," Kazemi said,  recalling the repression of Shia muslims and national minorities in  Azerbaijan.  The expert noted that Baku is trying to disguise this  behavior by hosting international events such as Formula 1.

He further emphasizes that Azerbaijan is using COP 29 as a tool to  deflect global, particularly Western, public attention from the  ethnic cleansing in Artsakh. "On September 19, 2023, Azerbaijan  launched an attack on Nagorno-Karabagh, breaching the 2020 Moscow  Ceasefire Agreement. This led to the mass deportation of more than  120,000 indigenous Armenians and violated their rights to property,  history, culture and religion," the expert notes.

At the same time, as Kazemi explains, by hosting COP29, along with  the news of the destruction of Armenian historical and religious  monuments in Nagorno-Karabagh, the President of Azerbaijan has  declared the region and its surrounding areas as so-called "green  energy" zones.  According to the Iranian expert, in addition to  capturing Artsakh, Azerbaijan is also engaging in aggression against  Armenia by claiming its territory as "Western Azerbaijan" and  refusing to sign a peace treaty.  Concurrently, Azerbaijan is pushing  promoting the so-called "Zangezur Corridor", which, according to  Kazemi, will have devastating consequences for the environment of the  region.

In conclusion, the expert emphasized that while the conference is  being held in Baku thanks due to Azerbaijan's petrodollars, the  country is not a deserving host for a UN Climate Change Conference.