Joint climate action opens new horizon for Azerbaijani-British cooperation

The British-Azerbaijani Chamber of Commerce event dedicated to COP29 was held in London.

Baroness Nicholson, the Trade Envoy of the British Prime Minister for Azerbaijan, business representatives specialising in COP and climate in Britain, employees of the British Ministry of Energy Security and Zero Emission, Elin Suleymanov, the Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Britain, Narmin Jarchalova, the Chairman of the Management Board of the COP29 Operating Company, representatives of AZPROMO and Azerbaijan Investment Company, BP company Bakhtiyar Aslanbeyli, Vice President for Foreign Relations and Communication in the Caspian Region, and more than 100 guests, including representatives of British companies operating in Azerbaijan, academic circles, and the media, participated at the event.

Welcoming the guests, John Patterson, co-chairman of the British-Azerbaijani Chamber of Commerce, explained that the Chamber's next event held in London was dedicated to COP29 because of the importance given by the British side to climate issues and that COP29 opened wider perspectives between the two countries.

Baroness Nicholson, the British Prime Minister's Trade Envoy for Azerbaijan, who made the opening speech, touched on the existence of friendship and cooperation between Azerbaijan and Britain in all fields and said that her country is ready to provide all necessary support for the successful holding of COP29. He mentioned Azerbaijan's experience hosting high-level international events and expressed confidence that COP29 will also be organised at a high level.

In the first part of the event, experts from Britain made presentations on various aspects of the COP and explained Britain's view of the process. The speakers unanimously emphasised that cooperation in the field of climate action opens new levels for Azerbaijan-British relations.

Stuart Brocklehurst, Vice-Chancellor for Business and Innovation of the University of Exeter, spoke of clear examples of climate change, and drew attention to scientific indicators that crises will arise in all areas affecting the well-being of the world's population if necessary steps are not taken in this regard. In this regard, the crucial importance of upcoming COP events, including COP 29, was touched upon.

During the 2021 COP26 held in Britain, Nigel Topping, who became the UN High-Level Champion on climate change, spoke to the participants about the main goals of the COP process, the current development line and expectations for the process. He said that COP29 will mainly be financial, business and scientific COP.

British East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Miranda Barker spoke about the participation and role of British Chambers of Commerce in COP processes.

The second part of the event was devoted to discussions from the perspective of the Azerbaijani side and preparations for the COP.

Azerbaijan's ambassador to Britain, Elin Suleymanov, noted in his speech that Azerbaijan has the experience of hosting large-scale events, as well as promoting constructive dialogue by bringing together both developed and developing countries. Emphasising the importance of this experience in the context of COP29, Ambassador Suleymanov said that the mutual trust-building measures achieved with Armenia played a role in the selection of Azerbaijan as the host of COP29 and said that the process is also useful for the peace agenda.

Zohrab Gadirov, deputy executive director of the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO), gave a presentation to the participants of the event about the special economic zones created in Azerbaijan and, in this context, spoke about the favourable business conditions for foreign investors.

Ulvi Mansurov, chief executive officer of Azerbaijan Investment Company, talked about the benefits of his company for British citizens who want to do business in Azerbaijan and the effective business opportunities and investment prospects created in our country.

In the end, the Chairman of the Management Board of the COP29 Operating Company, Narmin Jarchalova, briefed the participants of the event about the process of preparation for the prestigious event of international importance in Azerbaijan.

The participants congratulated the president of the club, Tahir Gozal, who was among the guests, on the occasion of the great victory of the "Garabagh" football club over the "Braga" club of Portugal in the UEFA Europa League playoff stage a day ago. They especially welcomed the enthusiasm shown by the "Garabagh" football club during the game.