200 Countries Sign Document in Baku: India Voices Opposition

200 countries signed a document at the UN COP29 climate conference in Baku, committing wealthy nations to allocate $300 billion annually to help poorer countries combat climate change. India has expressed opposition to the agreement.

“The amount that is proposed to be raised is incredibly small. It is a negligible amount. This document is nothing but a visual illusion. In our view, it will not help solve the scale of the problem that we all face,” said India's official representative Lila Nandan.

Mohamed Adow, director of Kenya's Power Shift Africa, described COP29 as “a disaster for the developing world.” He stated, “This is a betrayal of people and the planet by wealthy countries that claim to be serious about climate change.”

A group of 134 developing countries has demanded that developed nations allocate $500 billion annually. AFP reports that the deal was reached after two weeks of chaotic negotiations and sleepless nights, with diplomats reviewing the final terms just hours before the agreement.

Developing nations had threatened to walk out of meetings if wealthy countries did not agree to pay more. Despite asserting that a bad deal was worse than no deal at all, they ultimately did not obstruct consensus.

The United States and the European Union wanted new wealthy developing economies, such as China, to contribute. Beijing is now providing funding on its terms.