Anna Júlia Lopes*
Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago, president of COP30 (30th United Nations Conference on Climate Change), defended the acceleration of the Paris Agreement in a new letter released on Tuesday (19) and called on nations participating in the conference that have not yet presented new NDCs (Nationally Determined Contributions) for 2035 to present their targets.
According to him, around 80% of the members of the Paris Agreement have yet to submit new NDCs. The president stressed that the parties are aware of the importance of the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) receiving the targets in time for them to be included in the synthesis report to be presented in October.
“No action is a stronger demonstration of commitment to multilateralism and the climate regime than the NDCs that our countries present as a national determination to contribute to the Paris Agreement. First and foremost, the NDCs are demonstrations of the commitment of governments to their peoples,” he said. He added that the event organized by the United Nations Secretary-General on September 24, 2025 will be an important platform for countries to unveil the new targets as the “ultimate demonstration of support” for COP30.
Bonn Conference’s Results
Corrêa do Lago said that during the Conference in Bonn (known as SB62), in Germany, some countries expressed “significant divergences” over compliance with the NDCs. According to the ambassador, these differences can and must be overcome through what the president calls “frank, open and creative dialog”.
In the document, Corrêa do Lago defended the NDCs as “vehicles for cooperation” that allow countries to realize a common vision of the future. “If the picture presented by our NDCs as a whole proves disappointing, it is our collective responsibility to convert it into a framework that ensures a habitable planet, protects all economies and improves living standards and opportunities for all peoples and all generations,” he said.
The COP30 president said that the conference in Bonn served as an opportunity for the conference team to hear the concerns of the parties about the attempt to increase climate finance for developing countries and about the ability of nations to engage in climate action while there are still frustrations about this same finance and measures affecting international trade.
Expectations regarding synergies between climate, biodiversity, desertification and sustainable development and the implementation of a global call to reverse deforestation and forest degradation by 2030 were also some of the topics discussed at the meeting in June.
COP Presidency Consultations
The 6th Letter signed by Corrêa do Lago also announced consultations by the COP30 Presidency with the aim of achieving progress that would otherwise be left to the two weeks of the COP, to be held in November in Belém. The consultations will also include the participation of the COP29 Presidency and the presidents of the Subsidiary Bodies.
According to the ambassador, the consultations will begin in the coming weeks with an onlinesession with all parties. At the meeting, nations should give their opinion on the form and content of the responses to the NDCs and the synthesis report.
In addition, the conference will also hold face-to-face consultations: the first on September 25, 2025, in New York, before the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly; and the second on October 15, in Brasilia, after the High-Level Ministerial Meeting of the Pre-COP.
In parallel to the Presidency consultations, Corrêa do Lago added that additional consultations will also be held on five blocks for the COP30 outcomes: mitigation, adaptation, means of implementation, just transition and the Global Balance Sheet.
*IPAM journalist, anna.rodrigues@ipam.org.br
Image credit: Rafael Medelima/COP30
