Mukhtar Babayev: Caspian Sea is shrinking, and there is freshwater loss in Caucasus

The Caspian Sea is shrinking, and there are issues such as melting glaciers in the Caucasus and loss of fresh water, COP29 President, Azerbaijani Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Mukhtar Babayev said at the opening ceremony of COP29 in Baku, Report informs.

Babayev noted that timely submission of national adaptation plans is important in this regard: "These plans will determine how we share best practices, transfer technology, and support each other. We must complete these plans by 2025 and take the necessary steps to make progress by 2030. After adaptation, finance should be an important part of security, and transparency should be the foundation of all this. The first financial transparency reports are critical and should be submitted this year."

The COP29 president noted that important thematic areas should be addressed within climate plans: "These plans should be sensitive to age and gender issues. If we look at the latest scientific data and other obligations to future generations, from security onwards, we can see that COP29 is a real turning point for the Paris Agreement. Now we must show whether we are ready to achieve the goals we have set."