‘Gift from God!’ Cop29 descends into farce as Azerbaijan hails oil and gas at thinly attended climate summit

Cop29 has descended into an utter farce after the President of Azerbaijan hailed oil and gas as a “gift from God”, while Sir Keir Starmer committed the UK to an astoundingly ambitious environmental target.

Speaking at the summit’s opening ceremony earlier today, Ilham Aliyev criticised western nations who purchase gas from his nation and then subsequently criticise his negative impact on the environment.

He said: “Unfortunately, double standards, a habit to lecture other countries and political hypocrisy became kind of modus operandi for some politicians, state-controlled NGOs and fake news media in some Western countries.”

Declaring that oil and gas were a “gift from God”, the summit’s host added: “Countries should not be blamed for having them and should not be blamed for bringing these resources to the market because the market needs them. The people need them.”

The President’s comments came the same day that the British Prime Minister vowed that the UK would cut carbon emissions by 81 per cent by 2035 compared to 1990 levels.

Speaking in the nation’s capital, Starmer expressed his commitment to moving away from fossil fuels by 2030.

The summit, on the whole, was thinly attended, as heads of state from China, France and the US did not attend, although administration officials from the Taliban were invited by the UN.

Starmer defended his commitment to curb carbon emissions but stressed he would not dictate how Britons should live their lives.

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Speaking to journalists earlier today, the Prime Minister said: “We set out the target, which is an important, ambitious target. What we are not going to do is start telling people how to live their lives.”

Starmer later emphasised that his Labour Government would “tread lightly on people’s lives”, although experts have noted that dietary changes and decreased travel might be required to meet this new goal.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves took one step towards changing travel in her maiden Budget after confirming additional levies will now hit private jet users.

However, in contrast with Starmer’s stance, other European leaders have warned against excessively ambitious targets.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said: “We must continue advancing the green transition while also maintaining our use of natural gas, oil and nuclear energy.”

He argued that “we cannot sacrifice our industry or agriculture in this process,” and that “we cannot impose unrealistic quotas or burdensome rules on farmers and companies”.

Meanwhile, Orban noted that Hungary was preparing to become “a significant player in electric vehicle development and electricity storage”.

Orban’s comments have conflicted with the EU’s previous overarching commitment that Cop29 must defend a departure from fossil fuel reliance