UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is preparing to visit Baku to participate in COP29. Before the visit, he answered questions of Report's US bureau at the UN headquarters in New York.
- Mr. Secretary-General, thank you very much for this opportunity. It’s truly a historic moment for me as the first Azerbaijani journalist to interview the Secretary-General of the United Nations. Besides, I am a former refugee from Karabakh, and the UN holds deep meaning for me, and again, I am very grateful for this moment.
It's a great pleasure also to meet you in that capacity. You are internally displaced from Karabakh, and during my time as a High Commissioner for Refugees, I visited Azerbaijan many times, and I was supporting the government in its policy to support the people internally displaced from Nagorno Karabakh and the regions around it. I could witness how much the government of Azerbaijan has invested in order for people like you to be able to have a life fully integrated in society and benefit from all the aspects of the development of the country. So, I keep a very, very good memory of my visits and of my work with the government of Azerbaijan.
- Mr.Secretary-GeneraI, it will be your first official visit to Azerbaijan as a UN Secretary General. Azerbaijan, for the first time in the Caucasus, is hosting the UN climate summit-COP29. The Azerbaijani government has introduced 14 voluntary initiatives to enhance the summit's outcomes, including calls for ceasefires in global conflicts, commitments to reduce methane emissions, and pledges to increase global energy storage. A key proposal is a new Climate Finance Action Fund aimed at raising $1 billion dollars from fossil fuel producers to support developing nations. In just 10 months, Azerbaijan has shown great persistence and enthusiasm in preparing for COP29. This is our observation and what is yours? How do you assess Azerbaijan’s preparation for COP? What is your expectation from Azerbaijani government?
- I think the important thing is the ambition that Azerbaijan with its initiatives is able to drive. All member states that come for the COP, come for the COP to be a success, and the COP must be a success. Because climate change is wrecking around the world. This year is very probably the hottest year we have, the hottest months, the hottest day. We are having droughts, we are having hurricanes, we are having floods that are devastating large parts of the world and emissions that should be being reduced by 9% per year in order to keep in line with our objective of maintaining temperatures below 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. The truth is that emissions are still growing, and we are at risk of losing 1.5 degrees. So, we need ambition to change things, to reverse the course, and that is what is very important in Azerbaijan. And of course, let's not forget that Azerbaijan will be presenting its nationally determined contributions, its own action plan. And this will be a very important signal to other countries to have their nationally determined contributions that is fully aligned with 1.5 degrees, that has covered the whole economy. And that can be an example to tell other countries that you need to do the same.
- Mr. Secretary-General, Azerbaijan is among the most mine-polluted countries in the world. Since the end of the conflict in 2020, more than 400 civilians and military personnel have been killed by mine explosions including two of my colleagues, and more than 3000 have been maimed. Armenia has failed to provide complete and accurate information about minefield locations. Although supporting national mine action efforts remains a top UN priority in Azerbaijan, the UN has not informed the international community about UNDP’s demining efforts in Karabakh. We often see the UN issuing statements on the landmine problem in Ukraine, and other places in the world but we don’t see any similar condemnation or statements. I wonder why?
But you see action. It's very important you are see action. UNDP has been actively engaging in supporting the Azerbaijani Government. Already 350,000 people have benefited from a joint effort to demine. And more than that, there is a new agreement between the two countries to create in Azerbaijan, I would say, Reference Center that can be an example for all over the world. So, mines are, of course, something that should not exist. We have no doubt in saying that clearly. But we are fully supporting the government of Azerbaijan in order to allow for areas to be demined. Because demining, the end of contamination, is essential for people to go back to their areas of origin and for the development process for achieving the SDGs for all the important projects that the government might have to the benefit of its population.
- After the liberation of Azerbaijan's historical lands from 30 years of Armenian occupation, Azerbaijan is actively working to build peace with Armenia, even though Armenia often violates agreements. Despite uncertainties over a finalized peace agreement, Azerbaijani government emphasized that COP29 will still be a "COP of peace" because of the progress made in regional diplomacy. So, how do you assess the peace-building process between the two countries? Are you planning to visit the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan to observe the impact of the Armenian legacy of the war and rebuilding process in the area?
I am not going to. Supporting efforts that must be made for the COP to be a success means achieving a very ambitious finance goal. Because that finance goal is what will allow for the trillions to be mobilized in support of developing countries, to be able to keep 1.5 degrees alive and to support people in these dramatic circumstances they face with climate change.
Second, do everything I can to support the negotiations that will take place in order to have carbon markets, the so-called Article 6, which are carbon markets that will be transparent, that will be effective, and not just a pretext for greenwashing. Then to do everything to support the government of Azerbaijan in the negotiations in relation to all the other aspects of the COP.
Of course, it's very important that COP is also something that not only addresses the problems of climate change, but the consequences of climate change. And one of the consequences of climate change is, unfortunately, to be a trigger of conflict. This is a very important thing that we need to preserve in a moment in which we have conflicts from Gaza, to Ukraine, to Sudan and so many other places in the world. We did, we did it to make peace with each other and to make peace with nature, and this is the message I will be able to convey. But as I said, I do not intend to get involved in any political discussion.
- Mr. Secretary-General, Azerbaijan maintains active and effective cooperation with a wide range of specialized UN agencies and bodies. During its four-year tenure as NAM Chair, Azerbaijan led significant efforts in the fight against COVID-19 and advanced NAM’s institutional development. Additionally, Azerbaijan ranks among the most dedicated countries in its commitment to achieving the UN SDGs. Following COP29, Azerbaijan will start preparing for the 13th World Urban Forum (WUF13), scheduled to take place in Baku in 2026. How do you assess Azerbaijan’s contribution to the UN in general?
It's excellent. Cooperation is an excellent contribution. I myself could witness that when I was a commissioner for refugees. Our cooperation was absolutely outstanding, and our country team is totally engaged with the government in support of the strategy of sustainable development of the country, and in many other aspects. Azerbaijan has been very active here in the UN and the different bodies of the UN recently. And so we are, as I said, very happy with the excellent cooperation we enjoy with the government of Azerbaijan.
-Your meeting with President Putin at the BRICS summit was criticized by the international community. In addition, a few days ago, you expressed your deep concern about the troops being sent by North Korea to Russia to participate in the war against Ukraine. On the other hand, we know that you are preparing to travel to Ukraine to meet with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Do you hope for positive results from this meeting regarding the ongoing conflict in the region?
I think what is important with this recent escalation with the presence of the North Korea is to avoid the internationalization of the conflict. When we internationalize the conflict, we make a conflict between two countries become more generalized. It's world peace that is in danger, and that was the reason of my intervention.
- According to Azerbaijani government, more than 4000 Azerbaijani are still missing due to Armenian aggression. Unfortunately, no concrete steps have been taken within the UN to clarify the fate of these people. What actions should the UN prioritize to address and resolve this humanitarian crisis?
The UN is totally at the disposal of governments to find missing people in any place, anywhere and for whatever reason. We do not like the situation in which people are missing and the families suffer. So we will do everything we can, according to possible cooperation in this, in any other situation, to cooperate in everything that is linked to finding missing people, or knowing what has happened.
- There have been persistent demands for UN Security Council reform. What do you think are necessary for the United Nations to operate more effectively?
- I think the Security Council reflects the world of 1945, but the world has changed. Three of the five permanent members of the Security Council are European, with different positions, but European - France, the UK and the Russian Federation. The world is today a much bigger world. We need a Security Council that reflects the world of today and is not paralyzed by geopolitical decisions. And that is the most important reform that the international community requires, as it requires the same kind of reform in the international financial architecture and other aspects of global governance that were defined after the Second World War, when Azerbaijan, at the time, was part of the Soviet Union. And today, Azerbaijan is there, asserting itself in the international arena. So, it's fair that we have a world that reflects the Azerbaijanis of this world that were not there when global governance was established.