Australia leads negotiations at Antalya climate summit after hosting dispute

The United Nations climate summit is kicking off in Antalya, Turkey, following a row between Australia and Turkey over who would host the event. The Guardian reported that a compromise placed Australia in charge of negotiations, while the summit itself takes place in the Turkish city. [1][3]

Hosting the international climate conference had been a key pledge made in 2021 by Anthony Albanese, the Australian prime minister, while he was still in opposition. The Guardian reported that procedural rules delayed Australia from bidding, leading to an angry disagreement with Turkey before the final arrangement was reached. [1]

As FTMQ News reported earlier, delegates from nearly every country are gathering at the Expo Center in Antalya for the COP31 summit, which runs from November 9 to November 20, 2026. The previous year, the COP30 session took place in Belém, Brazil, from November 10 to November 21, 2025. [2][3]

Pacific nations held preliminary negotiations in Nadi, Fiji, and Tuvalu ahead of the Turkey conference, as FTMQ News reported earlier. Leaders from those countries focused their discussions on climate finance, ocean protection, and keeping global warming limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius. [4]